


We Are the Last

by shyla915



Category: Fallout (Video Games), Fallout 3, Fallout 4, RWBY
Genre: AU, F/F, F/M, M/M, Multi, World Death, rwby characters in fallout, time skip
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-30
Updated: 2020-06-28
Packaged: 2021-03-03 04:08:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 13
Words: 61,758
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24448600
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shyla915/pseuds/shyla915
Summary: Winning the war with Salem came at a great cost; the death of Remnant. Being sent to a different world by the dying wishes of one woman seven survivors are all that remain. Having been separated for four years by circumstance, they are brought back together by fate. In a race to save one of their own, they will have to confront their own demons and learn how to live again.
Relationships: Blake Belladonna/Deacan, Emerald Sustrai/X6-88, Jaune Arc/Sky (oc), John Hancock/Conrad Kellogg, OC/Preston Garvey, Robert Joseph MacCready/Male Sole Survivor, Ruby Rose/Mercury black/Cait, Weiss Schnee/Danse, Yang xiao long/ Adam (fallout 3 protaganist)/oc
Comments: 2
Kudos: 4





	1. Chapter 1

The soft hiss left her lips like a curse as she stumbled toward the woman who had once been her enemy. Holding a pale hand to her stomach she didn't even glance at the broken pieces of her scythe laying a few feet away. Her once beautiful, deadly, scythe was mangled and unusable, she would never be able to fix it. Crashing down to her knees the twenty-one-year-old didn't hesitate in gathering the pale woman in her arms. Even near death, the grimm queen refused to allow her tears of regret and sorrow to show. In a way this was what she wanted more than anything in the world; she was finally going to die, just like she'd wanted from the moment she lost her Ozma.

Unfocused red eyes closed slowly as she thought back to the moment Ozma returned to her for the last time. He'd never stopped loving her; even when she worked to destroy everything he loved. Watching him be torn from Oscar's body, killing the boy in the process, she'd thought that nothing would delight her more. Instead, he'd confessed he'd never been able to stop regretting leaving her that day so long ago. Knowing that she wanted to take it all back, yet that wasn't possible when she'd summoned the gods back to this world. She'd been a fool to believe that anything would happen but the destruction of humanity.

In truth despite promising her subjects the world Salem had simply wanted to die; no human was meant for immortality. Living forever was cold and lonely in a way that made her wish she'd never existed. Her subordinates had taken the place of her children for a while but even they couldn't quell the pain in her heart. Feeling something warm drip onto her face she opened her eyes slowly to find blurry silver starting down at her.

"I'm so sorry," the girl whispered; because that was what she was. A kindhearted little girl that Ozma dragged into this war all for the sake of winning, yet this child had proved she was stronger than anyone had thought. In truth, she'd thought the child would die the second Atlas fell, however, she'd been wrong; this girl was a survivor. If this was a different world, she would have been honored to have this girl right beside her; even now on death's door, this girl was apologizing to her despite the fact none of this was her fault. Of course, she could understand why Ozma chose this girl as his apprentice. If only she was able to go back in time and fix everything.

"Dear girl, there is nothing to forgive," she said. Despite the exhaustion, she could feel and the fact her hand felt as if it was led; she reached up to rest her hand on the girl's cheek. She'd chosen to seal away the gods so that these children could live on. She did not regret her decision even if it was the last choice she would ever make. She wasn't a fool, she knew that this did not make up for all the lives she'd stolen; yet laying here as she died, she wished for nothing more than for these children to live.

Ruby bit her lip trying to hold back her sobs as those red eyes began to grow dull. She never thought she'd say this, but she wanted the woman to live; she didn't know what to do. This wasn't the heroic future she'd pictured for herself at all; the fairy tales never said anything about the pain and death heroes went through. She'd struggled so hard; fought to save the world until there was nothing left to save. In the end, they'd lost everything; she'd lost everything, even her father, she'd been helpless to change anything. Why was she so useless?

Catching the woman's hand as it dropped from her face, she resisted the urge to apologize once again, there was nothing that apologizing would accomplish. Gently lowering the woman's body to the ground, she reached up clinging to the red scarf around her neck. Her nails dug into the fabric of what had once been her father's cape, as she shook in regret and fear. She wished her was here to tell her what to do; she wasn't ready to be alone like this. Her father, Qrow, should be here to watch over her like he always had; instead, he'd died in her arms just moments before Atlas fell. There was nothing she could do to save him either.

One single piece of red fabric was all she had of her father; well of both her parents. The red cloak she'd worn to remind her of her mother had burned to ashes along with her hopes of living a happy life. If she'd learned that he was her father years ago she would have screamed and shouted, but at the time with Atlas falling to pieces around her, she'd understood why he'd kept it from her; he'd only wanted to protect her. Now she had to protect those who remained.

Wiping the tears from her face she shoved herself off the ground ignoring the pain that spread through her body. Feeling the large scar on her back burn she pushed the reminder to the back of her mind trying to ignore the fact even killing Tyrian hadn't made losing her father any easier. To be honest the only reason she'd survived losing her father was Oscar; if it hadn't been for the boy dragging her back from the edge, she most likely would have killed herself. That's why being unable to save him had hurt so much. If she allowed herself, she could still hear him screaming as Ozpin's soul was ripped out of him.

This didn't feel like winning; there was no celebration or uplifting speech, no big cheers of victory. There was nothing but empty hearts and blackened earth where nothing would grow again. The entire world was dead leaving them the only living things. Large pillars of crystal had fallen to the side as if to mock them for being too slow to act; catching sight of her tattered form reflecting at her she looked away. Pools of grimm were dried and empty; not even the grimm would come back into this dead world. The bitter irony was that they'd solved the issue of the grimm threat by causing the death of everyone.

The four relics lay scattered across the barren battlefield; not even corpses were left. Their battle was for nothing; humanity was judged as a failure. Salem had done all of this just to bring them, the gods, back to Remnant and they had found humanity lacking; as if they had a right to judge. Of course, humanity fought back, yet it wasn't enough. Somehow it was never enough; she was never enough to save anyone.

When the God of Darkness turned his attention to the world intending to wipe out humanity, again, Cinder had acted the fastest. The woman who had killed more people than Ruby could count had used the power of both all four maidens to protect them; all of them, even her enemies. It had taken every ounce of strength for Cinder to keep them safe long enough that Salem could seal the gods in a pocket dimension using the relics. Ruby had no idea how Cinder had found the power to stay standing against a god, but she would forever be grateful to her. Looking toward where the woman was kneeling beside Emerald, she could tell Cinder was in a lot of pain. Taking the chance to look over her companions she winced at how horrible they all looked.

Jaune, their beloved White Knight, was alone as he sat his face buried in his hands; he'd lost far more than just Pyrrha at Beacon. He would always regret not realizing that he loved the woman until it was too late and while he would have loved to kill Cinder for taking her, there was no point anymore. What was the point in revenge when the entire world was dead; there was no point. He'd lost his entire team in this war until he was the last one standing. Nora, his happy sister, had died at Weiss's welcome home ball at Atlas; poisoned by Tyrian. After that Ren, his stoic brother, had spiraled into despair, he became ruthless and eventually died killing Hazel. The man just couldn't see the point in living without the other half of his soul so when Atlas fell so did Jaune's brother and sister leaving him alone once again. He'd been too weak to save them and now was paying for it by being the only one to still breathe. He could still feel the blood on his hands and the pain in his body; all the failures were clear as day and looking over at his broken sword he was almost happy it was gone because he never wanted to fight again.

Emerald, who had broken the minds of her enemies, sat shaking as she clung to Cinder with fear, uncertainty, and anguish ran through her eyes. They'd been on the wrong side of the war meaning everything she'd done was for nothing. She'd killed more people than she could count for Cinder; been soaked in blood to please the first person who gave her a chance to be something more than just a thief and it'd been for nothing. The only thing to come of this was a broken dream and shattered spirits; there was no point in thinking about the life she'd wanted to have after this war was over. She'd fought for Cinder because she gave her a home, for Mercury because he made her smile; she would have died for them part of her wished she had. It was true that she loved the time she'd spent with them yet now they were all going to die together; she didn't want to watch them die. All she wanted to do was curl into a ball and cry but somehow the tears wouldn't come. This wasn't what she wanted when she'd started on this path, after all when all this started all she'd wanted was a home and people who cared for her.

Weiss, their dear Ice Queen, leaned against her blade; the once shinning metal dented and warped as if to outline her mistakes. Her family was dead leaving her the only Schnee left; even before the God of Darkness wiped out every living thing. Whitley, her sweet little brother, had fallen first, killed by their father when he spoke out in her defense. She'd never thought he would defend her, and she wished that he hadn't. If only he'd managed to stay silent then he would have lived, if only for a little longer. Realizing what he'd done her father had shot himself; as if that would change what he'd done. He'd been a coward, trying to run away from what he'd done. In their final moments as a family, she'd told him she hated him, yet that wasn't true. She'd loved her father despite how many mistakes he'd made; if only she could take it back then maybe he wouldn't have snapped. Her mother had sat drinking in the garden as Atlas fell; they found her body in the rubble, it had been obvious that she hadn't even tried to escape. Winter went last killed by Mercury; she died defending the survivors with Qrow. It had been easy to see that despite all their arguments the two had loved each other and in the end, they died together; it had almost broken both Ruby and Weiss. However, she'd stood back up and fought until this point no longer cared about her name or her bloodline after all the only things that mattered were her sisters and brother. Forehead resting against the cold steel of her blade she didn't even realize she was crying for everything she'd lost until the tears hit the blackened earth.

Mercury, the butcher of Atlas, didn't regret much, but standing guard over his family he wanted to turn back time to before he took Cinder's hand. The killing didn't matter to him at all, he was okay with getting blood on his hands, yet knowing that soon he would have to watch his family die made him wish he was dead. He fought for his sisters and for himself, but he would go back to the moment they met and shake Cinder until she gave up on Salem's plan. He would change fate to bring back the world so that they could live. Killing was all he was good for but now he was just tired; the world was dead, so he was no longer needed. Looking down at Cinder's weak body he hated himself for allowing this to happen.

Blake, their Shadowed Assassin, had fallen to her knees now her ears were pressed against her head as she sobbed into her hands. She'd been the only one of them with something left to fight for yet no everything was gone. Her parents, her people, her home; she'd tried so hard to save them and nothing she did amounted to anything. Feeling gentle arms wrap around her she leaned into Yang, her sister in all but blood, and sobbed for everything she'd lost. Adam was gone, killed at Argus when he bought them time to escape a hoard of grimm. She'd thought he would run but instead he'd apologized then pushed her onto the airship leaving her to watch him be torn apart. Seeing his blade drop to the ground as he lost the strength to fight had hurt so much that she almost stopped breathing. Now here she was feeling that same pain only a million times worse leaving her to cling to Yang as she whimpered the other girl running her hand along Blake's back.

Cinder, the Seasonal Maiden, had fought and clawed her way to where she was, given up dreams and love to get to this point but it didn't even matter. Her hand clung tightly to Emerald feeling the girl shake in her arms despite the soothing circles she rubbed on her back. Hate was all she could feel and all of it was aimed at herself. She'd hunted down and killed Amber without hesitation to take the power of the Fall Maiden. Claimed the power of Spring by tearing Raven apart feather by feather as the woman had bought time for her daughter to escape. Murdered the Winter Maiden in her hospital bed and butchered the Summer. She'd done it all to feel powerful enough to protect herself so that she would never be hurt again. In the process, she'd met Emerald who became her sister and Mercury who became her brother. She would have done anything to keep them safe and she had.

Yang, the Burning Dragon, missed her father telling her he loved her. She wanted to see her mother again even if it was only so the woman could call her weak. She might be strong and powerful, but she felt like a child unable to do more than glare at the ground. Curbing her temper was meant to make her strong yet it hadn't she'd still lost to Watts and had to be saved by her father who killed the mad doctor at the cost of his own life. Everything she was turned out to be a lie she told herself to keep fighting in this pointless war. The truth was she wasn't strong, at least not when it counted. As she held her sobbing teammate, she wanted nothing more than to sink into the ground.

They were defeated, broken, people waiting for the end of the world and there was nothing Ruby could do to save them. Even simply standing here, she felt as if she was about to shatter into a million pieces at any moment. If only she'd been strong enough to stop Salem, then maybe this wouldn't be happening.

"I'm sorry," she said softly her voice breaking as she hugged herself tightly. The words worked wonders at drawing their attention to the shaking woman. Meeting the eyes of her white-haired partner Ruby wanted to allow herself to break when she saw the tears in Weiss's watery blue eyes. Her partner was the strongest of them and she never cried so seeing her so broken was agony. Taking a deep breath to keep herself from collapsing, Ruby said, "if I'd been stronger or faster than this would never have happened."

They were silent none of them daring to speak as they heard the self-hate in her voice. Ruby was the youngest of them, yet she was the one trying to take the blame for causing the apocalypse. There was a bitter irony in the broken look shining in her eyes as she tugged at the hem of her torn skirt. Their twenty-one-year-old leader was hurting so much that it radiated off her letting them all see the scared little girl she was. Cinder looked away her throat burning as she tried to shove down her emotions, the guilt she felt almost overwhelming.

"Bullshit," Jaune snapped sounding like a wild animal. Looking up at her with dry eyes, he could see every insecurity she tried to hide from them. Slamming his fist against his dented shield he stood saying, "We were fighting against Gods. None of us could have stopped this. Hell, all this even started because of Ozpin so let's blame him for it all!"

Ruby flinched at the shout stepping back slightly. Angry Jaune was like a honey badger who just got poked with a stick too many times. In truth she didn't agree with him about Ozpin. While the man might have kept secrets and lied as easily as breathing, he'd still fought with them, taught them, and most of all died for them. Without Ozpin's actions, they would all be dead, yet jaune had never been able to forgive the man for Pyrrha's death. Watching him begin to pace and grumble she moved forward to help Weiss to her feet. Holding out her hand to the woman Ruby silently pleaded for forgiveness from the white-haired woman. Blinking the fencer reached up and wiped away her tears before taking her leaders hand allowing the smaller woman to pull her to her feet. Stumbling slightly, she fell into Ruby's arms hugging the younger woman tightly despite the way Ruby flinched against her. All they had was each other in a barren world; there was no point in shifting the blame. Humanity might come back someday but they wouldn't be around to see it.

"None of this is your fault," Weiss whispered hoping to reassure her leader. Ruby tightened her grip as she returned the hug. She had to stay strong for everyone who needed her, she couldn't fall apart, not now when they had no idea what to do. So why did hearing those words break her completely? Choking she clung to her partner without even trying to disguise the shaking sobs that tore through her body. Feeling Weiss begin to brush her fingers through her hair, Ruby buried her face in the other woman's neck soaking Weiss's shirt with her tears. It hurt so much that the pain burned through her veins like fire. She'd failed them all, in her mind all of this was her fault. They'd trusted her and she failed; heroes weren't supposed to fail.

Looking away from the scene Cinder hated seeing the strong girl break. She hated Ruby for years, but even she respected the little girl, to see her break like was stunning. Gazing out at the death around her she knew that this wasn't what she wanted when she joined Salem. Years ago, she'd just been a weak woman struggling to survive, somehow, she felt that nothing had changed. She wasn't stronger or wiser than she had been on the day she took Salem's hand. Feeling what little magic she had left reach out she saw a flicker from the relic of creation just a small light blue glow.

Handing Emerald over to Mercury, who threw her a confused glance, she stood on shaking legs. Walking to the relic she felt everyone's eyes on her, but she didn't hesitate to reach out and pick it up. Feeling it resonate with the magic inside her body she stilled as she looked down at the glowing relic. It was like a light being turned on for the first time as the relic pulsed in her hand offering her everything she wanted. The blue crystal at the tip of the staff called out to her telling her everything she would need to do to save those around her but the solution would come at a price; one she would have to pay and she would pay it without question. There was nothing she wouldn't do to save those she loved.

"Cin," Emerald asked with confusion in her voice even as she pressed closer to Mercury. For a moment Cinder hesitated because she knew that Emerald would be devastated by her plan. She had no doubt that her actions would break the younger girl's heart.

Mercury held her tightly his eyes never leaving Cinder as he tried to figure out what she was planning. However, the woman didn't look at him she only had eyes for Ruby as the girl pulled away from her partner. Meeting the silver orbs that took so much from her, Cinder knew this was the right thing to do; this was the only way to fix everything she'd done and the only way to keep all of them alive. Before she made this choice however, she needed them to know that she never planned for the world to end.

"I killed Penny, Pyrrha, Amber and so many others that I lost count. Salem promised me power and I took that promise because I never wanted to feel weak again," Cinder stated refusing to look away from the girl who ruined all her plans. Allowing her lips to form a sad smile she wanted them to remember her for this moment not the times she caused them pain. Hearing Jaune growl at the mention of his girlfriend's death while Ruby looked at the ground when Penny was mentioned Cinder wished she didn't feel guilty. Looking away from them she sighed saying, "Neo died for me. Nothing I can do will change or absolve my sins. I'm hell bound, but you're not. I have a way out of this."

She had a way out of this but only for them and not herself. Seeing Ruby's eyes drop to the staff in her hand Cinder wondered if the foolish girl would try to save her too. It must've been the finality in her voice that alerted the girl because Ruby tried to lunge toward her only to collapse. Watching her crash down to her knees Cinder stabbed the crystal tip of the staff into the ground causing lines of blue to snake across the ground. Twisting and weaving the lines became a massive glyph, that resembled the summoning glyphs of the Schnee family. Smiling as the glyph created a transparent barrier around the seven kids, she hoped that they would be happy without her. As the eldest it was her duty to save them.

"Cinder!"

Emerald's voice caused her to hesitate. Watching the green-haired woman crash into the barrier she flinched. Feeling tears sting her eyes she wanted to look away as Emerald begged her to let them out. She wanted to; even now as the staff drained her power she wanted to just let go and live, but she couldn't. Even now as Mercury looked back at her in shocked horror, she refused to allow herself to falter.

"I'm sorry," Cinder stated knowing that nothing she said would be enough. This choice was easy for her to make but that didn't mean it hurt any less. Smiling through the pain she met his grey eyes as Mercury took a step forward pressing his hand against the barrier. Face dropping in sorrow he wanted to scream but he knew it would do nothing but make this worse.

"I love you," he said simply. He knew this was a goodbye, but he couldn't bring himself to say the words. They were stuck in his throat unwilling to be spoken even when she smiled sadly at him in gratitude. Feeling someone bump into him, he looked down to where Ruby had rushed forward to stand at his side. Even now it was obvious she was barely keeping herself standing.

"Cinder don't do this! We can find another way, you don't have to-"

"I'm already dead Little Red," she said softly. Seeing Ruby flinch slightly at the nickname Roman gave her Cinder watched the girl look away. It was true, Cinder could feel the taint of the grimm consuming her body along with the staff draining her life force. Soon there would be nothing left of her but a corpse. She would not make her family watch her die.

Watching Emerald hit the barrier as she tried to get to her, Cinder couldn't stop her face from twisting in anguish as she sank to her knees. Taking one hand off the staff she reached out pressing her hand against the barrier as Emerald finally gave up. Laying her hand against the older woman's she sobbed as Mercury sank to his knees beside her with silent tears running down his face. He'd always been so strong for them; never letting them see how much pain he was in. Smiling at them one last time she said, "I love both of you."

Finally, the circle glowed one time before the earth under them vanished leaving a black void in its place as she watched them fall, she never lost her smile. As the void disappeared leaving blackened earth in its place, she finally allowed her tears to fall at the loss of her family. Her hand fell from the staff as she collapsed her body hitting the ground with a dull thud. The maiden powers she'd used to fuel the magic burning through her body like lava she didn't even get a chance to scream before she died.

Cinder Fall was a murderer and a villain, but she died with a smile on her face having sent the ones she loved to a new world. She didn't know where they would land or what the world would be like, but she knew it was a chance for them to survive. That was all she wanted, one chance, one hope, for them to live even if she wouldn't. It was something she would never regret paying for.

Remnant was dead.

There were no grimm, no humans and no faunus; for the first time since its creation, the world was at peace. It had become just a world of charred earth waiting to crumble to dust at the slightest touch. The only thing left was the seven survivors sent hurtling through the sands of reality on the wishes of a dying woman. Each of them would land at a different place, each would experience a different fate, yet ties are not easily broken. The red string of destiny does not release those bound to her so easily. Even now they were bound together by something much stronger than blood.

This is a story about loyalty and reunions; it's about knowing that no matter how much pain someone goes through they will always have someone there to pick them up again. The darkness of this new world that will show just how far they're willing to go to save those they love and that there is no such thing as a hero. Hope and horror intertwine leaving despair. Love and loss playfully nip on their heels refusing to let them rest. Pride and sorrow wait just beyond sight ready to pounce at the slightest hint of weakness. Every movement ripples across fate drawing them closer to each other even when they're alone.


	2. Reunion

Waking up to sun cutting through the thin fabric of her patchwork curtain, Ruby couldn't with hold a groan. Why did the sun have to exist? She was having a perfectly good dream where she didn't have to worry about how many people she was going to have to kill today. Sitting up slowly as she remembered the meeting she was going to have in a few hours, she considered simply going back to sleep, after all it wasn't as if the mayor would come all the way down from his tower to knock on her door. Never mind the man was just stupid enough to think he would be able to pull off something so foolish.

Stretching her arms above her head like a cat; maybe she should get a cat, the woman held back a yawn. Today was going to be a long day and not just because she was taking a mission from the mayor, in truth she just had a feeling that today was going to be all kinds of horrible. It was just one of those days she woke up missing Remnant and her family more than usual. The transition from living with her team to being alone in a world darker than she was used too hadn't been an easy one. Kicking the fur blankets off her feet and onto the floor she rubbed her eyes with the hope that maybe today wouldn't be so horrible. Not that she would ever jinx herself by voicing such a hope; she was after all reckless not stupid. Standing she shivered as the cold from the metal floor traveled up her body, so she'd forgotten to move her fur blankets to the other side of the bed again; joy.

Stumbling to her small dresser; that was really the only other thing she could fit up here, she pulled out her outfit for the day and tossed it onto the bed. A bed that she cleaned religiously just so she didn't get a disease and die. Grabbing her brush, she sat back down making sure to bury her cold toes under the blanket she'd knocked on the floor. It was easy to brush out her semi-straight dark red hair, even if it reached the middle of her back, before pulling it into a quick braided bun to keep it out of the way.

She'd arrived in this world four years ago and spent the middle two looking for her friends. Of course, she hadn't managed to find anyone or even hear rumors about them. Given her sisters natural ability to start fires without even trying that was surprising. It was as if they just didn't exist at all which meant she had no idea where to even start looking for them in the wasteland. So, after two years of looking between jobs she'd tried to move on without them. Not that moving on was easy; she still found herself searching for signs of them during her jobs.

Speaking of which, she worked as a scavenger/mercenary in Diamond City. Most of her jobs came from people too afraid to leave the walls themselves; although there were some, like the one she was taking today that were from the Mayor. Given that McDonough tried to pretend that the world was a safe bubble that couldn't be popped, it was surprising that he had summoned her for a job. The only issue was that she couldn't deny his summons, unless of course she wanted to be kicked out of the city. To be honest having to leave wouldn't bother her very much; she always had a place at Goodneighbor, but she had friends in the city.

Standing once again she grabbed her clothes before walking downstairs to take a quick shower. Her house was split into two floors with the top barely being big enough to hold her bed and dresser; most of the time she didn't even bother to walk up the stairs when she got home and instead collapsed onto the clean couch. She was very proud of the fact her dark grey couch was spotless; unlike when she first found it after a guy from the upper stands tossed it out. The three days she spent cleaning it was the worst in her life, but it was worth it not to have to climb the stairs after a long job. The small dark brown wooden coffee table that she'd managed to refurbish was where she ate most of her meals. Not that she could do more than heat up some meet on her stove and hope she wasn't about to kill herself, but at least she was trying. The fridge and cooler beside her small stove were where she stored everything edible that she scavenged; of course, most of her canned and boxed food was stuffed into the storage area in hopes she'd never have to actually eat any of it.

Passing by her workshop, which was the biggest room in the house, she twitched. There was no other way to describe her habits as anything other than hording. Every weapon that she'd found and decided to keep was stacked neatly into crates just in case her go to weapons ever broke. The shelves above her desk were filled with knives, swords, and other melee weapons she'd come across over the years. Her addiction to weapons was totally healthy and there was no need for an intervention. Sometimes she was hired as a mechanic to fix people's weapons although those jobs weren't very popular; that did not, however, stop her from filling the crate beside her desk with spare gun parts.

Entering the small bathroom; she tossed her clothes onto the small table in the corner before turning on the water to wash her face. There was no time for her to take a shower today; not that she wanted to take one with the risk of being covered in blood later. Still she took the time to strip and scrub down her skin anyway. She didn't want to die simply because the homeless man outside coughed on her and she let the germs sink into her skin. Noticing her reflection in the mirror she sighed before dropping the wet rag back into the sink.

Pulling on the clothes she would be wearing today, she winced a bit at the hole in her nice red jacket. Despite the armored leather lining the inside of the jacket she'd still somehow managed to end up tearing it; that just meant she'd have to fix it later. Under the jacket was a black sleeveless hooded shirt and under that was the tank top she'd bartered off Piper last week. Snatching her boots from under the sink she pulled them on making sure to stuff the fabric of her jeans inside them. Hopefully the combat boots would keep her from getting dirt on her jeans again; after all there was still a week until laundry day.

The last thing she did before leaving the bathroom was to wrap her scarf around her neck. She never went anywhere without it; even when it might be easier to leave it behind. It was hard to hide the color red during stealth missions not that any of the Raider gangs were in possession of a working brain cell. Scoffing at the thought of them catching her, she entered her workshop to get her weapons. Stopping at her desk she pulled on her fingerless gloves before sitting down at her desk.

She had four weapons that she used daily; a rifle, a pistol, and two knives, none of which was counting the explosives she had shoved into her bag. She liked to be prepared for any situation even if her preferred method was sniping off her enemies from the rooftops. As such her rifle was equipped with a long-distance scope that she could switch out with a night vision variant at any time. Most of the time she didn't allow herself to be caught outside the city at night. Her lovely weapon also used fifty caliber bullets giving her enough power to take down anything except Super Mutants and Death claws. The pistol was different however simply because it was tiny. The nine-millimeter was equipped with a silencer just like her rifle.

Going through her bag one last time she refilled her empty bullet magazines before checking to see how many explosives she had left; the answer was four. As a rule, she mainly used glass packed grenades simply because they were cheaper. Not that she was wanting for money or anything; after all, she stored most of it in the safe under the floor in her storage room. Making a mental note to buy more explosives later; she stood. Slipping the pistol into the holster on her belt, she made sure to hide it under her jacket, the knives were both sheathed in different places. The combat knife she'd won in a game of poker at the bar, was sheathed in her boot; while, the switchblade was hidden in her pocket. Slipping her bag over her shoulder she zipped up her jacket before grabbing her rifle. Slinging the weapon over her shoulder she checked the leather strap for a moment just to make sure it wouldn't break. Seeing nothing wrong she stalked to the door and began the long process of unlocking all twenty of her locks.

It might have been over kill, but this was her haven; there was no way she was going to allow someone to ruin it by breaking in and trying to kill her. She'd had a hard-enough time saving the money to buy the house anyway which had taken almost a year. Her house was her safe place, so she'd ensured that no one; except maybe Kellogg, could break into it. Finally managing to win the battle against her security, she opened the door and headed outside. Grabbing the key from her bag she locked the door behind her before starting the walk to the market.

Diamond City always looked empty first thing in the morning. The only people not sane enough to stay sleeping were the shopkeepers and security. Glancing at a guard who'd fallen asleep with a bottle of beer in his hand she rolled her eyes in exasperation. While she couldn't actually blame the poor guys for being tired seeing as how they'd been awake all night, they still shouldn't be sleeping on the job. Entering the market area she hoped that Arturo had already opened for the day; she needed bullets for her rifle.

"Red, need a new gun," Arturo called causing her to resist the urge to grin. The dark-haired man was already prepared for the day and was simply standing in place waiting for potential victims. Seeing his much too cheerful expression she rolled her eyes as she walked over to him. The man didn't even seem tired in the early morning when most people would be sleeping in.

"Not really, but if you have ammo in for mine that would be great," she said playfully. The man smirked handing over the boxes he'd hidden under the counter.

"Just like you ordered," he said watching her slip it into her bag. The sniper was one of his best customers despite the fact she was almost never in the city longer than a week at a time. He honestly thought she had a death wish with how quickly she was taking jobs; he hoped she didn't however because his daughter adored her. She always ordered and paid ahead of time he suspected it was mostly so that she didn't have to remember paying him when she picked up her orders. Eyeing her with observant green eyes he tilted his head remembering something that he'd saved for her when the last shipment arrived. Carefully he reached down picking up her gift and said, "these also came in with the last caravan."

Closing her bag Ruby blinked her eyes landing on the small box of bobby pins in his hand. Meeting his eyes, she was about to argue when he glared at her using the annoyed father expression. Twitching she took the box and slipped it into her back pocket. Allowing a small smile to appear on her face, she said, "thanks for this."

"No problem, so Red what's on the agenda today," he asked worry dotting his voice. The last mission she went on caused her to get hurt; badly if he recalled. He hoped she wouldn't dash into danger like a fool just because her job called for it.

"The Mayor has a job for me," she said bluntly while making sure to keep her annoyance with the man quiet. Her dislike of the man was subtle but noticeable for those that knew what to look for and Arturo did. Noticing the slightly hard gleam in her eyes, he felt a small amount of pity for the mayor. They took a few more minutes to say their goodbyes before she stopped at the noodle stand for breakfast since it was the only place open this early, and she didn't want to risk suicide by cooking her own food.

Taking the lift up to the mayor's office she tried to relax, not that it would work, her dislike of the man didn't have anything to do with his personality, but rather what he chose to do with his position. Although his personality was horrible too, yet she couldn't say that to his face, she tried to ignore him most of the time. People had been going missing since long before she came here, and he was doing nothing to stop it. She didn't know if he didn't care or was just a coward but either way his entire existence annoyed her, yet at the same time, he also paid well so she couldn't really scorn him. Well, that and she still needed to live in his city for the time being.

Feeling the lift stop she held back a before stepping off into his secretary's office. Offering the woman, a small smile she wasn't surprised to get one in return. She might not like the woman for her racism, but she wouldn't let the woman know that. Once upon a time she would have stood up for injustice and tried to change things, sadly that person was long gone. Living through war had shown her just how horrible people could be and in turn just how horrible she herself could be. Touching her scarf, she frowned, a pang of longing rushing through her at the thought of everything she'd lost. Nowadays she tried not to dwell on thoughts of the past simply because they made her want to break down and cry.

Entering the Mayor's office, she felt her nose twitch at the strong scent of coffee and cigar smoke that clung to the room. She wasn't an idiot; she knew that the man used the scent of coffee to hide the fact he got drunk almost all the time. It was just another reason why she disliked him so much.

"Ruby, good morning it's not every day you come up to my office," McDonough said sounding cheerful, way too cheerful, for this early in the morning. The chubby man placed down a cup of what seemed like coffee, but she was willing to bet it wasn't; especially seeing as how he stumbled slightly when sitting down. Raising an eyebrow, she tilted her head as she wondered how easily she would be able to kill him and his guards.

The one on the right had a machine gun so he would have to go first, but once he was dead, she could use his weapon to shoot his friend. After that, however, she would only have a few moments to shove McDonough out the window before reinforcements showed up. It would be so easy to kill them that she almost wanted to do so, but that would be petty. She was above such petty actions; for now.

"I couldn't Deny a summons from the mayor of the city I'm living in," she said the dull annoyance in her voice contrasting with his cheer. Dropping her hand from her scarf she crossed her arms keeping her distance from him as the two guards near the door moved slightly in discomfort; at least those poor men could take a hint, unlike their boss. The icy tone in her voice was something she'd learned from Weiss and now she'd put it into practice dealing with these people and everyone else that annoyed her. Clearing his throat, the man winced as she said, "can we please get to the point? I heard you have a job for me."

Deciding that cutting to the point would be better for his own safety he said, "A caravan of four traders went missing last night, usually I wouldn't send anyone but the guards saw them being taken by raiders and the supplies they have are meant to restock our medicine store. It might be impossible to save both the traders and the medicine if so, choose the meds. "

Ruby's nails dug into the fabric of her jacket at his causal way of saying he would let them all die just because he didn't care. In her mind, the man was a coward, and not just because he refused to deal with missing persons but something about him reminded her of Lionheart and remembering how that turned out she wasn't about to give him even an inch of trust. Watching him move his coffee cup around nervously she wondered if her glare would catch him on fire. When he didn't spontaneously combust, she sighed and turned away from him.

At least he was upfront about his lack of caring about anyone other than himself, that did not, however, mean that she wanted to toss him out the window any less. Noticing the slowly leaking killing intent she'd been aiming at the unaware man she relaxed and glanced at the guards who were inching closer to her slowly just in case she snapped. This job was in line with what she'd been doing for the last three years, of course, when she helped Nick track down people it wasn't just so a greedy mayor could restock his chems. However, she wouldn't allow the traders to die either, so taking on the job was what had to happen. After all, it was either this or let his guards charge into the fray and make things worse; a million times worse, they had no concept of what it meant to be stealthy. None!

"Where were they last seen," She asked in defeat. Allowing her arms to drop down to her sides, she tried to ignore the overly cheerful grin he gave her. He was such a fake that it wasn't even funny. The smiles and cheer reminded her of a doll saying the same phrases over and over again, she hated it, and if it wasn't for the political backlash, she would have accused him of being a synth.

"They were taken near the old hardware store," he told her the cheerful smile never leaving his face. Nodding she frowned as she crossed her arms while narrowing her eyes at the chubby man.

"How much are you offering for the job," she asked coldly. Seeing the muscle in his jaw twitch, she pushed down her smug satisfaction that she felt at breaking through his mask.

"One thousand," he stated his voice hardening.

"Two thousand," she argued causing his eyes to widen. Meeting his now glaring eyes with her own she dared him to refuse.

"One fifty," he grumbled when it became apparent that she wouldn't back down.

"Deal," she said with a smirk. Turning on her heel she stalked past the guards who eyed her warily. Part of her wondered if they were able to feel her almost irresistible urge to murder the mayor. Winking at them she left the office and headed toward the lift.

Taking on raiders wasn't something she did often; or at all really. Usually, her jobs included infiltration, not a straight-up gunfight, not to say she wasn't good at killing. Kellogg had trained her how to kill during their time together when she'd first came to this world. The man was a surprisingly good teacher when he was around. She'd had to learn how to be stealthy, especially since her aura and semblance were gone. She'd figured it out when she'd been stabbed just a week after entering this world; somehow the lecture she'd gotten had been the worst part of the situation. Without her aura, fights were just a little harder.

She didn't want to admit it but sometimes living in this world was hard; much harder than she'd expected. If it hadn't been for the fact Cinder sacrificed her life to save them, she would have killed herself due to loneliness. Some days it was hard to even breathe without thinking of the people she no longer had. She didn't even know if they were still alive out there waiting on her to find them but as days went by, she began to realize that she didn't have anyone in this new life that really knew her. Not even Kellogg or Hancock could claim to truly know who she was. While she didn't want to taint Cinder's sacrifice, she wondered if it was selfish to wish she was happier?

Stuffing her hands into her pockets, Ruby tried to push the darkness of her thoughts to the back of her mind. There was nothing she could do about her life currently; well, not until Kellogg came back from his current job. He'd told her that he was doing a mission for his boss, although he refused to tell her who that was. After he returned, they were supposed to move her stuff to Goodneighbor permanently; yet he wouldn't tell her why he was so eager to get her back under Hancock's protection.

Passing the newspaper stand she didn't hesitate to wave at Piper as she exited the city. She might not know the raven-haired woman very well, but she almost considered her a friend. Raising an eyebrow at the guards who shrank away from her she rolled her eyes at their cowardice. They were so unwilling to leave the city themselves, but they had no issue allowing others to walk into danger. Sighing she walked through the gate as she pulled up her hood.

Weaving her way through the back alleys to reach the Hardware store she tried to keep to the shadows. Her footsteps as always were silent; unless someone had thermal vision they wouldn't be able to find her at all. It was easy to say that her combat style had changed a lot from the reckless approach she'd once had. Hearing voices ahead she pressed her back against the alley wall and glanced toward the voices. Several Raiders were wandering around without much care for the environment around them.

She counted five at the moment, but she was willing to bet there were more just out of sight. Searching the area for a vantage point she noticed the ladder hanging several feet above the ground. It was across the street in the alley opposite to her meaning she would have to sneak past the Raiders to get to it. Taking a deep breath, she waited until the Raiders turned away to dash to a ruined car a few feet away. Kneeling behind it she glanced over the metal sighting two more raiders. Holding back a groan of annoyance she rushed toward the ladder.

Leaping off the ground she grabbed the bottom rung and pulled herself up easily. Reaching the roof she sighed before pulling her rifle off her shoulder; the weapon seemed to grow heavy in her hands but she ignored it in favor of laying down on the roof. Looking through the scope of her weapon she closed her eyes for a moment as she wished that this wasn't her life. Opening her steel like silver eyes she targeted the Raider to the left before pulling the trigger.

For a moment everything was quiet then he started screaming as he fell to the ground clutching his leg. She didn't blame him for screaming, after all, she'd be in pain too if someone blew out her knee. In the time it took his companions to figure out there was a sniper she'd already taken two more shots followed by two deaths. Letting a dark smirk cross her face as they bolted for cover she stood and moved to the left a few feet giving her a clear view of another Raider who'd hidden behind a pile of rubble. Bracing her rifle against her shoulder she pulled the trigger watching with hollow eyes as his body jerked back before collapsing to his knees. That made four bullets she'd spent out of ten. There were only three Raiders left and sadly they were a bit smarter than the others.

Slinging the rifle back on her shoulder she walked to the edge of the roof and stepped off without hesitation, even without her aura her body was enhanced enough to survive such a small fall. Landing in a crutch she unsheathed her knife before stepping out into the open to bait them. No raider, even those with minute intelligence, could resist an easy kill.

The first to come at her was wearing a mask, something she was privately happy for, and wielding a baseball bat. Ducking under his swing easily she stabbed her dagger into his neck before ripping it out with more force than necessary. Targeting the man beside the door she sprinted forward before he could pull the trigger of his shotgun. Pulling his arm upward she stabbed the sharpened blade of her knife into his armpit. With a strangled sound he stumbled forward as his arm hung uselessly allowing the gun to fall from his grip. Kicking the back of his knees she watched him fall only to slash his throat causing his still warm blood to run down his neck.

To his credit the last one tried to run; no doubt to get reinforcements, except he didn't get far. Crying out in pain he crashed to the ground as she lowered her arm. With a dark frown she stalked forward and ripped the weapon out of his body. Her knife was covered in blood just like she knew it would be. Closing her eyes she breathed in deeply calming herself down before wiping the bloody knife on his shirt.

Turning her attention to the sobbing Raider that she'd disabled; she sighed and sheathed her knife. She hated this part of her job more than anything else but she would rather get blood on her hands then die. Stalking over to the man she noticed the exact moment that he panicked because his hand reached for the gun only a few inches away from him. Kicking the weapon, she smirked as it skidded to a stop several feet away.

"Bitch," he snapped managing to stop himself from crying just long enough to curse her.

"True," she agreed as her hand reached back to unholster her pistol. Watching him pale even further she tilted her head asking, "The caravan of traders, where did they go?"

Snarling at her he looked away making it obvious he was going to be difficult. Aiming the gun at his other leg she didn't hesitate to pull the trigger. In this world hesitation was death and she wasn't planning on dying today. Hands hovering above his leg he screamed as tears began trailing down his face.

"Next it'll be your elbows," she warned causing him to whimper.

"C-c-combat Zone," he stuttered between his tears. Looking down at the shaking man she decided that he wasn't lying before nodding. Her hand tightened on her gun for a second before she aimed at his head. Barely giving him a chance to beg for his life she pulled the trigger watching with empty eyes as he fell backward with a bullet hole in his head.

Turning toward the Combat Zone she resisted the urge to groan. Usually, she avoided the place because of the number of Raiders that gathered there, but she had a job to do. The Combat Zone was filled with Raiders and while they might be fools sheer numbers could overwhelm her easily. Holstering her gun, she started walking. The Combat Zone was a raider bar where civilians were used as entertainment. If luck was on a captive's side, they would simply have to fight in the cage matches, but for some, the situation was much worse. Shivering she rubbed her arms; she really didn't want to go to the Combat Zone. If all else failed, she could simply throw grenades at the Raiders. Keeping to the shadows she shivered as she got close to Trinity Tower.

The place was notorious for housing Super Mutants thus it was a place she would rather avoid. Tensing as a broad-shouldered mutant walked past her, she clutched the strap of her rifle tightly. Luckily, he didn't notice her, but she would rather not stick around to see if that changed; slipping into the shadows once again she kept to the outskirts of their fortifications. Even if she got into a fight with them, she wouldn't be able to win.

Making it past the hideout she sighed in relief as her shoulders relaxed. Just getting past the Super Mutants was a relief; although she knew her goal was still far away. Well not far exactly, it would only take her about twenty more minutes to arrive at the Combat Zone, but the Raiders would make her take longer than she should. Slipping past a corner she tensed when she noticed the two Raiders patrolling the street in front of her. Seeing them she knew she was getting closer to her destination. Taking a second to clutch the strap of her rifle she frowned; getting into a firefight with them would ruin her stealth attempt. With a sigh she unsheathed her knife and waited until they passed her corner to move.

Lunging toward the one holding a gun she covered his mouth to keep him from screaming; for a moment he struggled against her only to slump as she cut through the skin of his neck easily. Dropping his still twitching body to the ground she ducked under his comrades attempt to behead her with his machete. Stepping backward to put distance between them she waited until he lunged at her with a small cry to duck under his outstretched arm. His momentum caused the blade in her hand to be impaled through his chest as if she was cutting through butter. Hearing him gasp in shock and pain, she twisted the blade ruthlessly before ripping it from his body. Grabbing him by the hair before he could collapse to the ground, she cut his throat.

Dropping him to the ground she took a deep breath. It wasn't something she liked admitting to herself but sometimes her bloodlust was overwhelming. Hancock thought it was her repressed emotions that brought out her darker urges while Kellogg simply said she was a warrior without a war. Living this day to day without a purpose made her nothing more than a ticking bomb waiting to go off. Eventually, unless something changed she would be consumed by her emotions.

Kneeling beside the body she wiped her blade on his shirt before sheathing it. She couldn't think about how screwed up her mind was right now. While she might have avoided the Combat Zone, she had mapped the area on her scavenging missions. Standing she walked to the ladder that she knew would lead to a roof overlooking the entrance. Walking to the edge she laid down before looking through the scope.

So, far she could only see that there were five raiders, but she knew there were more inside. Taking her finger off the trigger as a shout caught her attention, she stilled her attention going to the figure being dragged to the doors. At first, she thought it might have been one of the traders that were captured, then he was knocked back causing his hood to fall from his face revealing his grey hair and matching eyes.

Mercury Black glared up at his captors with enough hate to melt an iceberg. Even with guns pointed toward his face he didn't seem to care about the danger he was in. Moving her finger from the trigger she barely realized her hand was shaking until she heard him cry out in pain. It was instinct that caused her to pull the trigger just before the Raider aiming at his face did the same.

Screaming the Raider dropped his gun as her bullet pierced his wrist destroying his muscles. Watching the gun begin to fall from his hand Mercury didn't hesitate to snatch it from the air before kicking away the now crying Raider. Diving behind a barrel as cover he winced as pain shot up his right leg reminding him that he had forgotten to do repairs; not that he had the supplies to repair his legs anyway.

Sneering at the unbalanced pipe pistol in he waited until the gun fire from the Raiders stopped before standing and firing. Keeping them distracted while the sniper took them out one by one he couldn't help but marvel at how accurate their aim was. Hearing footsteps behind him, Mercury was about to turn when a bullet flew past his face. Twitching at how close it had been he finished off the two Raider's trying to escape. Catching sight of the figure standing on the roof he raised his hand and offered a wave.


	3. Partners

A week ago, their camp had been ambushed by Raider while he was away looking for parts for his legs. Before he could return Emerald was taken leaving him alone in this world. He'd known it was a better idea to stay at Abernathy Farms where they were safe, instead Emerald had wanted to find the others for old times' sake. He wouldn't have agreed if he knew that she would get kidnapped, but it was too late to run away. He'd already tracked them to their hideout although he was a full two days behind them.

It was the anger he felt that kept him from descending into a panic; most of the anger was at his own weak inability to keep her safe. If he had just stayed with her instead of going out to look for parts, then maybe they wouldn't be in this situation. Kicking the body of the Raider who'd been about to shoot him he bent down to grab his gear back from them. Re-holstering his knife and pistol he sent the body one last glare before turning his attention to the approaching sniper.

The sniper was female and from the eye-catching red scarf she had around her neck he could tell immediately who she was. He couldn't tell if he was lucky or unlucky, but he supposed that depended on if she decided to shoot him or not. It was just his rotten luck that the very moment that Emerald was kidnapped one of their old enemies showed up, although to be fair he had no idea if she was still his enemy or not.

Ruby had no idea what to do; she'd saved him from dying but she had no idea how to talk to him or how to deal with the joy she felt. He was alive which meant the others might have survived too; she wasn't alone anymore. Although she doubted, he would appreciate her being around him. Shifting nervously, she stopped a few feet away from him; just out of grabbing range in case he decided that they were still enemies. Pushing down her hood she pretended not to notice the way he tensed.

In all honesty, she figured he'd join the Brotherhood of Steel since they had the parts for his legs, instead, here he was dressed in tattered drifter gear with a limp. One that meant there was something wrong with his legs; which worried her. The Mercury she knew would have never allowed his legs to remain unfixed for long. It was possible that he lacked the parts to make repairs, if that was the case then she could help. Part of her wanted to ask if he needed help but she didn't know how he would respond to such a question. He was stronger than she was four years ago, and she had no desire to get on his bad side by insulting his pride.

"Hello Mercury," she said her voice soft. Offering him a small tense smile she ignored the way her skin felt like it was on fire as he studied her.

The first thing he noticed was how dull her eyes were. Even during the war, the sparkling silver had been filled with life and determination; seeing those eyes darkened made it all too apparent what this world had done to her. The lack of her team was also startling since the four had always been together. Either they hadn't found each other yet or they were lying in wait watching his every move. The rifle on her shoulder meant that he couldn't ignore her saving his life, but maybe she could help him save Emerald too. Relaxing his shoulders, he took a single step toward her before stopping when he noticed her hand tighten on the strap of her rifle.

"Ruby, glad to see your still alive," he said surprised to find he meant the words. Seeing her eyes light up briefly he was annoyed to note them darken just as quickly.

"Same," she said with another small smile. It was nice to see him although this wasn't how she'd envisioned any meeting between them to go; for one thing, no one had gotten killed yet. Glancing down at the dead bodies she asked, "how did you get captured by Raiders?"

Running a hand through his messy hair, Mercury frowned. Raiders, usually, had the collective intelligence of a bag of bricks; so, getting caught wasn't his best moment. In his defense, though it was easy to underestimate the wasteland bandits. He was not going to tell her that he got careless however so instead he said, "They snuck up on me when I was tracking them."

"Why would you be tracking Raiders," she asked tilting her head. The action almost caused him to smile. It was subtle but the way her nose scrunched up at the thought meant she hated Raiders; not that he could blame her.

"They took Em," he told her resisting the urge to growl. He didn't want to scare her off just moments after they'd found each other.

So, Emerald was alive too, and apparently, she was inside the Combat Zone. That explained why Mercury was out here fighting random Raiders. She only felt a bit of pity for the fools that had taken the thief; they really had no idea what they'd brought to their doorstep. The two were inseparable; she wasn't surprised that he would track her down, yet that also meant that he probably wouldn't stick around after he found her. For a single moment, she wanted to scream in frustration. She'd finally found one of the others and would most likely lose them just as quickly.

"Now, what are you doing out here? And where's your team," he asked breaking her from her thoughts.

"A Job," she stated ignoring his second question completely. When he simply raised an eyebrow in question she said, "I have to save the traders inside before they get killed."

Nodding slowly, he frowned when it became obvious that she wasn't going to answer his second question. He doubted that her teammates were waiting to jump out of the shadows and kill him, so it was likely she was alone. The last time he'd seen her on her own was just after the fall of Atlas when she'd tried running away. It had been the first and last time she'd been without someone around who could comfort her. Knowing that he doubted that her teammates would let her out of their sight; so, they most likely hadn't found each other yet. It had taken him a year to find Emerald, finding Ruby alone wasn't much of a stretch.

Meeting her eyes, he smirked asking, "want to help me slaughter them?"

Was he asking her for help? Biting her lip, she glanced at the doors to the Combat Zone as she thought through her options. Logically she knew that there were far too many Raiders than she could comfortably deal with. Emotionally she didn't want to let him out of her sight for even a second just in case he managed to vanish. There was also the fact that the Raiders had taken Emerald; while she might not know much about the green-haired woman outside of battle, Emerald was still from Remnant. She was one of them, no one could harm her. Nodding slowly, she dropped her hand from the strap on her shoulder. The smirk he gave her caused her to feel warm.

"What's your plan," she asked taking a nervous step toward him.

"Well originally I was going to just rush in and try to shoot them all," he admitted. Hearing her scoff, he grinned. He could admit that the plan wasn't the best he could have come up with but at least it was something. Walking toward her, he noticed that she immediately began to play with the fabric of her scarf. Raising an eyebrow at the nervous action he decided to ignore it for the moment in favor of saying, "Now that you're here, I vote that we try stealth first."

"Alright," she agreed. It was a good plan, sort of, and if they're turned out to be too many then she could throw grenades at them. Offering him a reassuring smile she watched him go to stand beside one of the doors before following his lead.

Stalking toward the door she pulled her knife from its sheath, if they were going for stealth then using her guns wasn't a good idea, holding it tightly she pushed open the door quietly while Mercury did the same with the other door. There were two raiders guarding the doors, most likely they were meant to raise the alarm if attacked. Narrowing her eyes, she trusted Mercury to have her back as she dealt with her target.

Mercury tore his eyes away from the girl as he lashed out at the unprotected leg of the Raider in front of him. The man barely had time to cry out before Mercury grabbed his throat in a tight grip. Holding the man against him Mercury stabbed the blade up between the man's ribs piercing his heart before ripping it out. Dropping the dead body, he looked over at Ruby as she gently lowered her own victim to the ground. She'd cut open his throat, he could admit that her technique was much cleaner than his own. The thing about her that truly captured his attention however was how innocent she looked even with a blood-covered knife. Noticing his eyes on her she tensed before glancing up at him anxiously. His intense eyes weren't judging her, yet she still felt as if her skin was burning under his gaze.

Turning away from her he studied the room around them a critical gaze. It was obviously some kind of entryway but the only thing he cared about was that it was separated from the rest of the building. They'd been quiet while dealing with the guards so none of the Raiders knew they were here; they had the advantage. Hearing the doors behind them close he glanced back at Ruby unsurprised that she'd sheathed her blade. Looking down at the blade in his hand he frowned before sheathing it.

Seeing the bound Raiders in the cage area she tilted her head wondering if they knew where Emerald was. Deciding to let them live just in case Emerald wasn't inside she turned her attention to the doors leading to the main area. Feeling Ruby brush past him without touching him, Mercury watched her press her ear against the door leading to the rest of the building. The sounds of cheering could be heard on the other side, so a cage-fighting match should be going on now. What should they do now? Going in guns blazing would get them killed but wasting time could cause her mission to fail, plus, Mercury wasn't at full strength.

"I need one of them alive in case Em's not here," Mercury stated when she pulled away from the door. Considering the bitter rage, he felt now it was a testament to his restraint that he was even able to talk to her instead of acting like an enraged fool.

"Will they work," she asked as she motioned to the bound Raiders. Following the action, with his eyes, he nodded slowly. It would be easier to leave them alive till later than it was to try capturing another one.

"Are you ready," she asked reaching for the handle.

When he nodded, she pulled it open just as the cheering reached its apex; she supposed that meant the fight was over. Sneaking past the door she didn't take the time to marvel over the colosseum like area, after all, there would be time for that later once they'd killed the Raiders. Glancing around she noted the gun-wielding maniacs before narrowing her eyes at the steel cage. It was easy to see the tied-up traders huddling on the left side of the arena, but she didn't see Emerald.

For just a second she allowed herself to give in to panic at the thought of Emerald not being here. What would they, he, do if the green-haired woman had already been moved? Would he leave her behind to chase after his partner? Could she survive being alone again?

No, she wouldn't be able to survive being alone again; but that wasn't the point right now. There was no time for her to have a mental breakdown when they were in a room filled with Raiders. If she could sneak up to the upper levels, she would be able to take out the Raiders above them quietly.

"Cait once again thrashes her o- What the hell? There are two people sneaking in!"

Ruby tensed her eyes narrowing at the announcer as the Raiders turned slowly to look in their direction. Making a mental note to punch him in the face, her hand slid into her bag grabbing the fragile grenade. Feeling Mercury throw her a look she waved it in his direction before tossing it at the group rushing in their direction. Diving for cover she felt Mercury bump against her as he did the same. Hearing him snort at the grenade went off, she smirked as the Raiders began to scream in pain.

"Should I be worried you hide explosives in your bag," he asked amusement dripping off every word.

Moving before she could answer; he didn't notice her eyes widen at his words. Unholstering his pistol he smirked at the expression of regret and shock that colored the blue-eyed man's face seconds before Mercury pulled the trigger. Chuckling Mercury stepped to the side before sticking out his leg and tripping the raider who'd been charging at him from behind. Kicking the fallen man into a wall he followed the action with a single shot to the man's chest. Feeling something brush past his face he raised an eyebrow as a thud sounded behind him.

"You know, I would love it if you would stop almost shooting me," he teased. It was a split-second impulsive decision that caused him to speak but he didn't regret it; especially when it caused her face to heat up with embarrassment.

Turning her back to him she tried to pretend she wasn't blushing as she tightened her grip on her pistol and used it to finish off the Raider that had survived her grenade. Finishing off the last man whose leg had been impacted with sharp shards of glass, she frowned when the announcer began to narrate the fight. It was his fault she'd been unable to sneak up on the Raiders before they noticed them. Hearing a shout from behind her she flinched and twisted only to blink as her attacker dropped to the ground. Watching Mercury rip the stolen machete out of their back she noticed the woman approaching him with a rifle and reacted on instinct by shooting.

Choking the Raider raised a tanned hand to clutch her neck before falling to her knees. Chuckling Mercury pulled the fallen assault rifle out of the woman's hand before turning his attention to the incoming Raiders. Ducking back behind cover as he opened fire, Ruby took the opportunity to shrug off her rifle and lay it against the wall. Checking the ammo in her gun she frowned before sighing. She'd have to put in another order with Arturo once she got back to the city. Slamming the clip back into her gun she reached into her bag pulling out another grenade as Mercury ran out of bullets.

"Duck."

Following the order without hesitation he dropped back behind the table they were using as cover as she tossed the grenade at the Raiders who had rushed them. Apparently throwing the empty gun at them had been the perfect way to get their attention. Chuckling as their screams filled the air, he glanced at the woman beside him who was switching out her gun for her knife. Raising an eyebrow, he got a shrug in return.

Ruby was a lot less talkative than she was years ago. Then again four years plus a war would change anyone. Case in point, before he met Emerald again he'd been considering taking over the raider factions; mainly because they were all idiots who rushed the opponents even when they were wearing power armor, but also so that he could have his own personal army. He did, however, doubt that anything he decided to do would have increased what little intelligence they had. Maybe it was the radiation making them more stupid over the years, not that he really cared.

Tightening her grip on her knife, Ruby glanced over the edge of the table mentally counting the remaining Raiders. Nodding to herself she smirked before she vaulted over their cover. Lashing out with a kick she smirked as her foot impacted one of the raider's chests causing him to stumble. Stabbing his friend in the neck as the man tried to punch her, she twisted the knife gaining a gurgle in return. Holding him up she used his body to block the gunfire before tearing her knife out of his neck. Pushing the body away she dropped to the ground, her leg lashed out kicking the legs of the raider she'd kicked earlier.

Taking the chance to shoot the man Mercury smirked as she stood slowly. If this was how she always fought, then he could deal with having her as his partner. He doubted Emerald would disagree with having the woman around. Seeing a Raider rushing at her back he aimed his gun at the man only to frown at the dull click he heard. Cursing silently Mercury looked around as she picked up a pool stick and used it to block the blow from the Raiders bat. Seeing the machete beside his foot he stomped on the blade hard causing it to fly into the air before he caught the handle.

"Ruby!"

Glancing at him over the Raider's shoulder she immediately knew what he wanted. Pushing the Raider's weapon upward she spun, gaining momentum, before kicking him in the chest. Stumbling backward the Raider barely had time to cry out before Mercury swung the machete with enough force to cut off his head. Dropping the pool stick she bent down and grabbed her knife as he looked over the machete in his hand. Deciding that he wanted to keep the weapon, he hooked it his belt.

"That was fun," he said. Watching him wipe the blood off his face she was all too aware of the blood that covered her own body. Looking down at her sleeves she frowned at how dirty she'd gotten during the fight. Deciding that cleaning off the blood could wait, he said, "Let's go get Emerald."

Nodding in agreement, Ruby tried to ignore the sudden feeling of dread that settled into her stomach. Even though they'd been together less than an hour she realized she didn't want him to leave. If he found Emerald, he would leave her alone again, but she didn't say anything about her doubts instead she followed him toward the stage.

Climbing the stairs, she glanced at the ghoul cowering behind a sheet of metal as Mercury opened the door. Turning her attention to the woman standing beside him without fear, Ruby wondered if this was the Combat Zone's famed cage fighter. Eying the redhead for a moment she raised an eyebrow when the woman smirked in her direction the woman was either brave or extremely stupid. Did she even realize that they'd just massacred the entire Raider population of the Combat Zone or maybe she was just too high to realize there'd just been a shootout? She'd meet people like that, the drug dealer in Diamond City was a great example. What other reason would she possibly have for leering at her?

Hearing a groan, she noticed the three tied up men in the corner of the ring. Passing Mercury, she moved toward the bound men while her temporary partner stalked forward to question the cage fighter and announcer. Kneeling in front of them she tried not to feel bad when they flinched away from her out of fear; it was a natural reaction. Ignoring her unease, she asked, "you're the traders that got caught on the way to Diamond City, right?"

Nodding one of them flinched when she unsheathed her knife causing her to freeze. Making sure her movements were slow she used her knife to cut the ropes holding his hands before turning to the other two and doing the same. Helping them stand she looked them over for wounds before letting them go and taking a step back.

Watching them rub their wrists, Ruby asked, "is the fourth one alive?"

"N-No he tried to resist," one of the braver ones said. Ruby frowned as she realized she'd failed to save all four of them.

"What about the supplies," she asked hoping that at least one part of her mission could be accomplished in full.

"It's in the back," another said just as Mercury snarled.

Turning to face him, Ruby tensed as he slammed the ghoul against the cage wall. The rage and desperation on his face were all she needed to see to know that Emerald wasn't here. They'd been too late to save the woman yet for a single horrible moment Ruby felt happy. If Emerald wasn't here, then maybe he would stay with her until they found the woman. The thought was so horrible that she felt sick for even thinking it. Walking toward him slowly she reached out laying a gentle hand on his shoulder.

"Mercury," she asked softly only to flinch when he snarled.

Dropping the man to the ground he shook off her hand before rushing off to grab one of the bound Raiders they'd left in the entry room. If Emerald wasn't here, then he would just torture her location out of them. Allowing her hand to drop to her side, Ruby resisted the urge to run after him. There was nothing she could do to make the situation better and part of her thought she had no right to even try. Hearing the door slam behind him she straightened and turned her attention to the ghoul who had gotten back to his feet.

"Well you certainly put us out of business," the ghoul said and gave a nervous laugh when a gut-wrenching scream sounded from beyond the other side of the door letting them know that Mercury had begun the torture session. The woman raised an eyebrow glancing toward the door curiously before frowning; it almost looked as if she was disappointed at not being able to join him. Tilting her head Ruby waited for him to continue since she knew he wasn't done. Seeing her expression, he said, "these raiders were keeping us alive as long as my Little Bird here won her fights."

"Don't call me that," the woman snapped. Ruby shrugged not exactly caring what they'd been doing, if her job hadn't brought her here she wouldn't even have taken on the raiders.

"I don't really care, I just came for them," she told the two. Pointing to the three traders standing in the corner and tossing cautious glances at the door she wondered just how difficult it would be to get them all back to the city. They obviously weren't stealthy so that meant her normal route was out. The ghoul nodded his shoulders dropping as he took that to mean he was safe, well from the woman at least, turning to the woman beside him they began to bicker.

Returning her thoughts to Emerald, Ruby frowned. They'd missed her but if they left now then perhaps, they could find her, but they couldn't do that until Mercury got the information they need. Glancing at the traders she thought over her options. Mercury would, of course, want to go after her immediately and Ruby didn't want to let him go alone but she doubted he would be willing to wait until she escorted her charges back to Diamond City. Unless of course, he knew their destination, then he might stop and take the time to plan and heal. She hoped that he wouldn't just decide to take off and leave her behind.

Hearing a yelp as one of her charges tripped over his own feet she groaned. Frowning she turned her attention back to the shocked traders. Sighing she motioned for them to go get ready to leave causing them to snap into motion they began to gather their stuff. One of them even darting back into the backroom for the supplies.

Mercury was murderous, but least he had the raider to focus his attention on. She doubted the man would last long when confronted by Mercury's rage, yet she was just happy it wasn't her that he was angry with. Even now it was hard to forget the times when the assassin's rage was turned on her in the past. Rubbing her arms at the thought she winced remembering the time when they were enemies; along with times he'd overpowered her without even trying.

"You might want to wash off, I doubt rubbing will do much," the fighter stated breaking through Ruby's thoughts. Looking down at her drying blood on her arms Ruby could admit that getting cleaned up would be a boon. Nodding slowly, she followed the fighter down the steps toward the small kitchen like area while the ghoul followed not wanting to admit that he was against being left alone. The fighter tossed her a towel saying, "we've got running water from the generator outside."

"Thanks," Ruby said pulling off her jacket as another scream echoed.

Laying the blood-soaked jacket on the counter she took the time to wipe down her arms. She didn't notice the other woman following her every move with heated eyes. Wiping the blood off her arms Ruby sighed as the red revealed her pale skin. Behind her, the two were bickering again although the woman watched as Ruby twisted the towel before dunking it in the water again. Letting the sound fall away she started on washing the blood off her face and hair. Her jacket would have to wait until she got home but at least she was a bit clean.

"How long is your friend going to torture that guy," the ghoul asked sounding almost distressed. Glancing at him over her shoulder Ruby shrugged at least no blood had gotten on her undershirt. Watching him slap a thing of Jet out of the woman's hand she turned off the water; so, she'd been right about the woman being a drug addict. Laying the towel on the side of the sink she decided to be polite and introduce herself.

"I'm Ruby," she said offering them her hand without hesitation. Shaking it the ghoul grinned his expression lighting up.

"I'm Tommy and the Little Bird is Cait," he said ignoring the growl from Cait.

When the woman rolled her eyes, Ruby took her hand back, it was obvious that the woman didn't want to shake her hand. Tuning him out as he began to ramble again, she leaned against the counter. The traders were talking among themselves as they got ready to leave.

Sighing Ruby glanced toward the door, was it wrong that she didn't want Mercury to leave her? Was she being selfish by wishing he would stay? Crossing her arms, she curled in on herself as the loneliness and fear she'd been living with for the last three years came rushing back. She hated being alone more than anything else in the world. The friends she'd made in Diamond City just weren't the same as the family she'd been separated from. Not even Kellogg or Hancock was able to fill the void that had been left in her heart after Remnant.

Despite their history as enemies, he was a familiar link to her past that she missed just a little more each day. Biting her lip, she blinked when the screaming stopped for a second; was he finally finished finding the answers he needed. Hearing a gunshot that confirmed her thoughts, she looked toward the door only to hear a crash from the other side. Wincing at the sound she began moving toward the door as quickly as she could. Rushing past Cait and up the stairs she threw open the doors only to flinch as instinct caused her to duck under the gun he threw at the doors. Hearing it hit the ground behind her, Ruby glanced at the dead body leaning against the wall.

Mercury hadn't been gentle with the Raider at all and she ignored the white bone sticking out from his legs. She understood their need for information she just disliked the method of gaining it; putting the thought from her mind she turned and closed the door behind her. Turning her attention to Mercury as he paced, she wondered if even being in the same room as he was a good idea right now. Deciding that she had to try calming him down before he went on a rampage, she took a step toward him.

"Mer-"

"They left two fucking days ago!" he screamed cutting her off.

It was mostly self-hate in his voice, but his anger was filling the air around them and making it hard to breathe. Taking a moment to settle her heart before she panicked, she watched him pace like a caged lion as she clenched her hands. Would it be a bad idea to move toward him right now? She didn't want him to see her as a threat and attack. Staying still she winced every time he let out a growl. The Mercury she knew was never one to show his feelings so easily so the emotions he was showing shocked her more than anything. Steeling her heart, she took a hesitant step forward as she decided that helping him was more important than her own fear.

"We'll find her," Ruby said trying to keep her voice calm. He froze and the tension in his shoulders let her know she might have made a mistake.

"Why do you even care," he snapped keeping his eyes glued to the floor. If he turned to face her, he was sure he'd snap and attack. He'd always been more prone to violence than the others on his team; not counting Tyrian, yet he didn't want to accidentally hurt Ruby.

The words hurt. She felt like she was fifteen again facing him down in a corridor to save Penny's life only to fail. The pain of knowing that he hadn't been her friend still hurt to this day; however, it was also true that he hadn't hurt her that day, even though he could have. Pushing away her own emotional pain she didn't move when he said, "Penny's dead because of me. I killed Winter. We were on opposite sides of a fucking war so don't you dare say it's because we're friends."

Having everything shoved back in her face should have scared her off or at the very least made her reconsider what she was about to do, instead, she just reached up to play with her scarf. The last thing she had that connected her to Qrow and their world; don't get her wrong she loved her scarf. Yet somehow if the only connection she had with the past was a scarf then it felt like none of it was real. Cinder had sent them here to save their lives, so that they could live, but Ruby hadn't been living these last three years, she'd just been surviving.

Fake smiles and trying to stay happy in a world that she didn't want to be in was not living. She knew that eventually this act of survival would shatter, and she would be worse off than she was three years ago but now she had a chance to change that. His question echoed through her mind as if it was taunting her. When he spoke and laid their history out in the open, he brought back the pain of open wounds that she'd thought were healed long ago. Caring had once been a part of her personality; it had been as easy as breathing. She'd been the girl who fought to become a hero and a huntress, but now she lived her day to day life not caring about anything other than this scarf.

"I don't want to be alone anymore," she said softly. The pain-filled words slipping past her lips without her permission.

Mercury gritted his teeth as the words registered in his mind. The pain in her tone caught him off guard, but he supposed he wasn't surprised. Ruby had always been with someone on her team; of course, she was lonely. Turning to look at her he could see the agony in her eyes. Rubbing his forehead he frowned. Was this who they became? Drifters and mercenaries; killers for hire. Was that what Cinder wanted for them when she died so they could live? No, it was not. Looking at the broken woman across from him he hated that he could understand what she was feeling. How long had she been alone? It must have been longer than the four months until he found Emerald. Could he really walk away and leave her here? No.

Emerald would never forgive him for leaving Ruby behind; not after they'd been talking about finding everyone again, plus, she'd tried to save Cinder. That counted for more than he was willing to admit, and she was good in a fight. Shifting as he crossed his arms, he felt a flash of pain shot through his leg causing him to wince; he really needed to get his leg fixed.

"Fine, let's make a deal," he said moving toward her. Ruby jolted her eyes widening at what he was implying; was he going to stay with her? Hope flashed through her eyes causing them to brighten for the first time in years as she dropped her hand from her scarf. Meeting her eyes, he said, "We work together to find Em, then we go from there. I won't leave you if you don't leave me."

The words were a lifeline and for a moment it felt as if the storm of loneliness she was living in cleared just a bit. Grey eyes stared at her so intently that she was reminded of Haven and the moment he'd looked at Emerald the same way. Studying the anxiety that darkened his eyes she realized that he was offering her more than just a moment of peace. He didn't give his word or promise to never leave her; she'd learned not to trust empty promises anyway.

"You won't leave me," she asked her voice barely above a whisper. She was so terrified that he would take it back and laugh at her for believing him.

"That's what I said," he told her. The determined glint in his eyes that let her know he wouldn't let her be alone anymore. He hadn't been sure when he offered her the deal but looking at her now, he knew he'd made the right choice.

Ruby choked her hand covering her mouth as the tears she'd been pushing back stung her eyes. Seeing the strange mixture of pain and relief in her eyes he reached out patting her on the head awkwardly; he really hoped she'd stop crying soon. The small action seemed to have the opposite effect however and caused her to cover her eyes as she began sobbing.


	4. Empathy

_Standing in the crumbling remains of the Atlas Vault Mercury knew it was only a matter of time until they had to evacuate themselves. It had been all too easy to assassinate General Ironwood in the chaos and let Cinder steal the Maiden powers. Now all they had to do was take the relic; the only issue was that a certain little girl had figured out their plan. Well, not their plan exactly, she'd actually came to kill Tyrian. He could understand why she would want to murder the faunus; he had to fight his own urge to kill the man daily._

_Apparently, Tyrian had managed to kill her father while Mercury himself was dealing with Winter. He doubted that Weiss knew he'd already killed her sister, given that she hadn't left the woman's body. Ruby had been the only one to come after them all on her own hoping for some semblance of revenge. It was impressive that she'd managed to track them all the way down to the vault, but she'd been outmatched and outnumbered._

_Still, he didn't doubt she would have been able to deal with Tyrian if not for her sense of morality. When Watts had fallen from the platform, she'd redirected her course to save his life. Using the last of her aura she'd gotten them back onto the platform only for Tyrian to slam his boot into her head knocking her out. Now they were trying to figure out what to do with the girl; his vote was to kill her if they let her live she would just come after them._

_"Killing her would be easier," Tyrian cooed running his hands through Ruby's hair. The unconscious girl groaned in pain at the action. Cinder growled her hands lighting up in flames and daring him to even try. Reacting to his leader's mood, Mercury stepped forward ready to back up whatever choice Cinder made._

_"Stand down Tyrian," Watts said softly but there was no mistaking the order in his voice. The faunus pouted as his hand lowered toward the girl's neck. Hearing a gun being drawn, Tyrian froze and looked up slowly. Watts, despite the bleeding injury on his side, held his revolver steady as he aimed at the faunus._

_Knowing that the man wouldn't actually shoot Mercury glanced down at the girl for a moment. She looked tiny as she laid helpless on the floor and he couldn't help but feel pity for her; when she awoke her father would be dead and Atlas would have fallen from the sky. All the work she'd done to save the city was for nothing._

_"But that's not fair," Tyrian pouted but withdrew his hand._

_"She saved my life," Watts snapped clutching his wounded side. She'd sacrificed her revenge to save his life. They all knew that she wouldn't get a second chance to kill Tyrian for a long time._

_Cinder rolled her eyes at his weakness but didn't argue. Even for people like them, life debts were serious matters; there was no arguing with Watts about this. Seeing her acceptance of the situation, Mercury frowned. If they left Ruby here, then she would die during Atlas' fall. What was the point in owing her a debt if they left her to die without repaying it? Moving past the arguing men he kneeled, cuts and bruises marred her skin showing how hard she'd fought to gain her vengeance. Picking her up gently he stood._

_Just what was this girl eating; she felt way to light to be a teenager. From the number of times he'd tossed Emerald over his shoulder he knew what a healthy teenage girl should weigh, and Ruby was nowhere close. Deciding that her eating habits shouldn't matter to him he turned to follow his leader out of the vault._

Tossing the blood-soaked towel into the sink, Mercury was glad to be rid of the blood that had covered his skin. While torturing people didn't bother him, death and destruction were literally what he'd been trained for since he was five, the looks given to him by the traders and ghoul were starting to annoy him. It was like they'd never heard anyone be tortured before; given that they lived in this radioactive wasteland that just wasn't possible. Shrugging it off, he watched Ruby pull on her jacket and noticed that she was watching him once again. He could see that she was still a kid, even during the war she'd just been a kid forced to grow up way too quickly. It was hard to think of her as his partner.

The word partner meant so much to him personally. Emerald had been his partner and that had built one of the most precious relationships he'd ever had. Without Emerald and Cinder, he knew he would have become just like his father. There was a fear in him that Ruby would end up being important to him as well and then he would lose her. He'd already lost so much, and he didn't think he'd be able to survive losing anything or anyone else.

It was true that before Remnant fell, they were enemies; in fact, he was pretty sure Cinder had hated her; at least for the two years after Beacon fell. After that, it was like the woman stopped caring about what Ruby did to her. It wasn't a secret that they'd treated Ruby differently after the fall of Atlas. During every battle they fought to maim not kill; it was that very disadvantage that allowed her to become far more dangerous than any of her friends.

"We need to move," Ruby said knocking him out of his thoughts and back to reality.

Smirking at her he nodded in agreement; the more time they wasted here the longer until they found Emerald. Watching her grip, the strap of her rifle nervously he knew she wanted to ask him something but instead she simply turned her attention to her charges and motioned for them to follow her. The traders glanced at each other nervously before falling into place behind her, she would be glad when she got rid of them, they were baggage that she didn't need right now.

"Wait, take Cait," Tommy said gaining their attention. Ruby looked at the woman cautiously, but she didn't disagree. They would need people to help them save Emerald unless Mercury had an army waiting on him. The redhead was stared at him in disbelief before allowing her anger to take control.

"You can't be serious," she snapped reaching out to grab his collar. Underneath her anger, Ruby could hear the concern. Cait obviously cared about the ghoul no matter how much she might deny it.

"If you stay here, you'll kill yourself Cait and I can't watch you do that," he said with determination. There was a pleading tone to his voice that made Ruby uncomfortable. This seemed like a private conversation that they really shouldn't be having in front of everyone. One glance told her that Mercury felt the same; heartfelt displays weren't something either of them was good at, at least not anymore.

"And what will you do once I'm gone," The redhead asked him while trying not to sound like she cared. Tommy could see the worry in her eyes and honestly, he shared it just a bit. It might not be immediate but unless he got some defenses set up the raiders would be back, and he didn't want to die defending this place. Looking over her shoulder at Ruby he made up his mind. Cait wasn't going to die here protecting him and he wasn't going to sit here waiting for the raiders to come back to kill him.

"I'll be heading to Goodneighbor, there's a guy there that owes me a favor or two," he said before easing her hand off his collar. Smiling at Ruby, he said, "would you be interested in taking Cait's contract?"

Contract? Seeing the disbelieving expression on Cait's face, Ruby connected the dots. Cait was like Kellogg; if someone held her contract, she would have to obey their orders. If they didn't then their honor and reputation would suffer and for a mercenary that was one of their worst nightmares. Kellogg only had a year left on his own contract and he would be free of his employers. Ruby didn't want to force Cait into obeying her.

"I will," Mercury said before Ruby could refuse. He knew that her morals would interfere with what needed to be done. Frowning Cait glared at him, which only turned fiercer when Tommy reached into his coat and passed over the folded contract; she'd wanted the pretty woman to take on her contract, not the man. Taking it Mercury shoved it into the pocket of his pants before nodding at Ruby to lead the way. Knowing that she could do nothing to change his mind the sniper shrugged before motioning for the traders to follow her.

Exiting the Combat Zone, Ruby sighed. Now all they had to do was make it back to Diamond city in one piece. She had to keep her mind on one objective, or she would be overwhelmed by everything she had to do. The ruins were dangerous, more so when in larger groups, and if they let their guard down for even an instant they would be overwhelmed. Pulling up her hood she tried to relax. Being tense was like asking for someone to come and kill them.

Watching Ruby for a long moment Mercury frowned as he wondered if he'd made a mistake taking Cait's contract. She might not have argued with him, but he could tell that she disapproved of his choice. There was a possibility that she didn't argue simply because she thought he might leave her for speaking out. If that was the case, then they were going to have to talk once they reached safety; he didn't ask her to be his partner simply because he found her attractive. On that note, he had noticed that she was much more attractive than she was four years ago, not that she hadn't always been attractive. It was just easier to feel attracted to her now that she wasn't his enemy; or fifteen. Okay, moving on, it seemed that living four years with only his sister for company hadn't dulled his ability to spot attractive women.

Pushing the thoughts of her attractiveness into a box in the back of his mind, Mercury fell back to cover the rear with Cait as Ruby unholstered her pistol. Copying the action, he was suddenly very glad he'd remembered to reload his gun. He could trust Ruby to keep them from running into trouble while he kept their charges from wandering off or getting eaten by wild dogs. Scoffing at the thought he tried walked quietly his eyes watching them closely.

Starting the trek back to Diamond City gave the cage fighter long enough to glance over her new contract holder. She didn't quite know what to make of the man who just spent almost an hour torturing a guy for information; usually, she would have run in the opposite direction. Who knows what kind of man he was and given that he turned right around and promised not to leave the woman who they were following? Every action he took was strange and he just didn't make sense, no that wasn't right, he reminded her of the men who enslaved her. To her watching him it was like he was a bomb waiting to go off. Seeing his face twist she wasn't surprised when he motioned for her to watch the traders as he sped up until he was walking beside Ruby.

The quiet empty streets set him on edge; he could just tell that there was something stalking them; if they were attacked then he wouldn't be at his full strength. Limping beside her he growled at the thought of his leg getting in the way during a battle. Hearing him she stiffened slightly before relaxing and looking up at him with questioning eyes. Knowing that she was still hesitating to question his decisions he offered her a small smile.

"Why did you take her contract," she asked softly so that he was the only one who could hear. There was curiosity and caution in her voice, yet he counted it as a win.

"We'll need more than the two of us to take on a nest of raiders," he said. He made sure to keep his voice level and without any sharpness.

Seeing the logic, she nodded but didn't agree with his choice. When she thought about Cait she couldn't help but think about Kellogg and his hate for his own contract. Turning her attention back to the task at hand she tightened her grip on her weapon as she saw the marker for Super Mutant territory. They would be nearing Trinity tower soon and she hated having this many people around. Glancing back at the traders she wondered if they should take a different route; to bypass the Super Mutants took stealth and she wasn't sure that her charges had any. It wouldn't help to get her charges killed right after saving them.

"I'm going to scout ahead," she said. If there were too many patrols then she would come back and change their route, but if there weren't then it would be safe to continue. Turning to face him she asked, "can you watch them?"

"Of course, but be careful," he said.

She tensed at the concern she could hear in his voice as it simultaneously caused her to feel warm while sending shivers down her spine. He'd never used that tone with her, and she had no idea how to deal with it. Was he worried about her not coming back? Frowning she shrugged off her rifle and held it out to him causing his eyes to widen for a moment. If she didn't have her rifle she'd have to come back and not having it would keep her from starting a fight when she shouldn't.

"I will come back," she stated. Her silver eyes were bright with determination for the first time in years. There was no way she would go off and get herself killed right after finding him. Pushing the weapon in his direction again she smiled when he didn't hesitate to take it.

"Good, since you're not getting this back if you don't" he teased causing her smile to widen.

Watching her take a step back before vanishing into the shadows, he looked down at the gun in his hand. On Remnant it was a sin to give away your weapon to anyone you didn't trust; by giving him this Ruby was putting her trust in him and promising to return. Letting his lips tilt upward into a brief smile he shook his head; there was still some of the old Ruby inside the cold mask she wore.

Deciding that they had to get out of the open he glanced around spotting a half-destroyed dinner. Nodding to himself he turned to her charges saying, "We'll be settling in here until Ruby comes back."

Following his finger, to the small building behind him they seemed to want to argue but glare he gave them discouraged it. Cait scoffed at his attitude but could fully agree with how annoyed he felt about babysitting. Watching the traders walk into the small half destroyed dinner she turned to him for orders, when he simply pointed to the door again, she walked inside but not before rolling her eyes. Sighing Mercury wondered what he'd done to deserve this before deciding that was a stupid question. It had to be karma for all the people he'd killed during the war.

Stretching he took one last glance in the direction Ruby had left before walking into the dinner and lowering himself down to sit against the counter. With nothing else to do he allowed his thoughts to wonder toward his sister. He hoped he found Emerald soon, she was never one for violence and he hated that he wasn't there to keep her safe like he was supposed to. It had been one of the first orders Cinder had ever given him after they met and all these years he'd live up to it, however, in time it had become less about orders and more about what she meant to him.

"Who is she to you," Cait asked the curiosity in her voice pulling him out of his thoughts. He was slightly thankful but mostly annoyed that she'd disturbed him. Turning to her he tilted his head waiting for her to elaborate. Seeing the look, she said, "the girl you two are after?"

"My sister," he said bluntly while hoping that she would let it go.

Blinking at his short answer, Cait compared him to the memory she had of the woman she'd seen before deciding it would be better not to ask. She'd seen hundreds of weird families over the years and siblings with differing skin colors weren't that big a deal. If he was going to this much trouble for the woman then it must not matter if she was his blood or not.

"And Ruby, who is she to you," Cait asked. She was hoping that the woman was single or at least into other women. Tensing Mercury sent her a warning look before leaning back and closing his eyes; he hoped that she would get the point and be quiet. Seeing that the conversation was over Cait sighed before returning her attention to the ruins around them. Keeping one hand on Ruby's gun he resolved to have her be the one to babysit next time. Rubbing his leg with his other hand he wondered how long it would take to fix this time.

(Ruby)

Making sure to stay silent she crept forward sliding her pistol into her holster in favor of unsheathing her knife. It was more silent giving her an advantage if she got into an unexpected fight. The area was quiet, much too quiet to be natural. Trinity tower was one of the biggest Super Mutant outposts in the ruins it was always loud. Given the fact that she couldn't hear any of them, it made her worry slightly. The only times when they were this silent were followed by raids unless someone had decided to take out the entire base. That, however, was impossible for anyone normal. Flipping her knife into a reverse grip she kept to the shadows as she moved forward closer to the tower. If the Mutants were prepping for a raid the mayor had to know, and if they'd been killed then that was something that needed to be shared too. Walking into the building the first thing she noticed was the blood that covered the floor.

Frowning at the bitter scent of copper and gunpowder, she moved toward the stairs. This much blood usually meant bodies, and there they were. The corpses of several Super Mutants were scattered around the edge of the staircase. At least now it was safe to say they weren't preparing for any raids. Scoffing she sheathed her knife; it was obvious that the Super Mutants were no longer a threat. It would take them months to colonize this outpost again and that would give a scavenging team time to pick it clean. Moving her scarf up to protect her nose from the scent of blood, she stepped over the bodies. Keeping close to the railing she walked up the stairs slowly.

By now she should be hearing gunshots, but there were none. Seeing something glitter against the dark pool of blood it rested in she kneeled next to the small pool of blood. Picking up the bullet she rolled it in her hands inspecting it with critical. It was small and most of the corpses she'd come across were littered with bullet wounds; the attackers were most likely using some type of machine gun or assault rifles. Laying it back down she stood slowly and wiped her hands on her pants. It was a given now that she wasn't the only human in the tower since Super Mutants used bigger weaponry. Would this be enough information for the mayor? Probably not knowing the fat idiot. Pushing back the urge to commit murder that came with thinking of the fat fool, she kept moving.

The dark corridor ahead did nothing to help her already fraying nerves; it was like a scene from a horror movie. The investigator usually died in those, didn't they? The thought caused her to roll her eyes. Was it arrogant to think she could take care of herself? It wasn't as if something would come crawling out of the shadows and try to murder here. The only thing that could sneak up on her in this tower were the people massacring the Super Mutants and she was following them. There was absolutely nothing to fear.

Hearing a groan, she froze and bit her lip. Her first instinct was to say screw it and run away leaving who ever was hiding in the room beside her alone. Taking a calming breath, she tried to think logically there was someone alive in there and she at least had to check if they were savable. Slipping past the partially open door she made sure not to be seen as she pressed her back against the wall and moved toward the sound slowly. The scent of gunpowder entered her nose as she moved through the small side room.

Behind an upturned table, a large Super Mutant was breathing harshly and trying to stop the blood pouring from his body. Green skin flexed dangerously as the Super Mutant pressed his hands against the bullet wound only for blood to slip through his fingers. Stilling Ruby didn't know what to do but watch as he tried to stop the bleeding. These things were the scourge of the wasteland yet here he was fighting to live just like she had for the last four years. The creature had most likely killed hundreds of people so killing him now would be the right thing to do, so why did she feel so bad for just thinking about it. Looking at him now struggling to breathe she bit her lip, putting him out of his misery would be a mercy. Wouldn't he just die anyway?

"Damn it," she whispered cursing every sympathetic bone in her body. Fuck her bleeding heart; it had gotten her into more trouble than anything else. Hesitating for one more moment she steeled her heart before she moved into sight. The Super Mutant panicked which honestly reminded her of a cornered animal. Holding up her hands in surrender she hoped to stop him from reaching for the gun beside him. It, of course, didn't work since the mutant had aimed it at her chest but didn't pull the trigger. Heart pounding, she wanted to turn back around and walk out the door but instead, she said, "I'm not going to hurt you. I just want to help."

"Human help," he asked the gun wavering.

His tone told her that he didn't believe her at all which made since given the history of violence between the species. Which wouldn't exist if his kind would stop ambushing and eating people. Nodding slowly to confirm her intentions, she waited for his choice. If he moved to pull that trigger, then she was out of here and he could help himself. She wasn't about to risk her life for a Super Mutant. Scoffing he laid the gun down causing her shoulders to slump in relief. Taking the movement for acceptance she walked toward him slowly making sure to keep her hands in sight the entire time. Hancock was so going to kill her; not to mention Kellogg would give her that disappointed dad expression, that he had somehow mastered without having any kids of his own.

Keeping her wary eyes on him she kneeled slowly beside him making sure not to actually touch him. The blood leaking out from under his fingers didn't give her much hope for his continued survival, but then again, she'd survived similar wounds since coming here. Moving his hand gently she reached into her bag. Harsh green fingers clamped onto her arm as he growled at her in a warning. The sound was harsh and any wrong move from her would cause the grip on her arm to tighten. For a second she wondered if he could hear her heart pounding or see the sweat dripping down her forehead, but she pushed the thought away and tried to calm down. Gods, what was she even doing? Still, it was far too late to turn back now. Keeping her eyes on his own she pulled the small first aid kit from her bag.

"You can break my arm, or you can let me help," she said raising her chin defiantly.

The grip on her arm tightened for a moment before he let go completely. Relaxing she held back a sigh of relief; she really hadn't wanted her arm broken. Opening the first aid kit she laid it on the floor beside her leg before she reached into her bag for a bottle of water. Cleaning the wound, she frowned at the condensed patch of bullet holes in his skin. The dark ring around the wound meant it was a point-blank range too. Someone had shot him with either an assault rifle or machine gun while pressing the barrel against his skin. Whoever did this wanted him to suffer.

Circling her hand around his body she made sure that the bullets went clean through the flesh she didn't want to cut into him to remove bullets. Seeing that they had she laid the water bottle to the side before grabbing the bottle of vodka out of her bag and pouring some on her hands and the wound. No, she didn't drink the alcohol was for cleaning wounds and starting fires; since her father's death, she hadn't dared to even try drinking.

The snarled growl from beside her caused her to flinch and ready herself to be attacked when nothing happened, she relaxed slowly. She probably should have warned him first. This thing could literally kill her with two fingers what the hell was she thinking? The simple answer she wasn't. Still, she pushed away her reservations and got to work on saving his life.

This was not how her day was supposed to go. Finding a few traders yeah, she could deal with that. Seeing Mercury again, hey her day just got better. Trekking through a tower filled with Super Mutants to see if this could become a new savage point for Diamond City and get a bonus, ok that was possible. Stitching up an injured Super Mutant, fuck the world. No seriously somehow her day had gone from amazing to horrible in less than ten minutes and it was all her fault.

Mercury must never find out about this; he would laugh at her until he got sick. Had seeing him again reawakened her compassion or maybe she just wasn't as immune to death and pain as she had thought. So much was wrong with this situation, but she didn't regret making the choice to come out of the shadows. Yes, she was terrified that he would turn around and kill her once she stopped the bleeding, but that didn't change the fact this was the most like herself she'd felt in years. Hands shaking, she wiped the thin sheen of sweat from her brow before cutting the medical thread with her knife. She'd made sure to keep the stitches small so they wouldn't get caught on anything or come undone when he moves. What was it that Cinder had called her; a 'stupid foolish girl with too much empathy' the description caused her to smile as she remembered Cinder amused smile.

Glancing up at her patient she winced at the dark eyes staring down at her; he seemed to be studying her, but she couldn't even begin to guess what he was thinking. Looking away quickly she finished wrapping the bandages around his body before shoving her things back into her bag. Using the last of the water she washed the blood off her hands. Now all she had to do was make it out of the tower without running into whoever did this to him; she doubted they would take well to her undoing their work. The bottle in her hand crinkled as she crushed it and tossed it into a corner.

"I can't help you get out of this tower," she said knowing that if she brought a Super Mutant to Diamond city she would get kicked out. The amused, maybe, scoff he gave as she stood told her he understood. Stilling, she frowned as her ears picked up a sound, she really wished they hadn't.

There were footsteps coming this way. For a terrible second, she felt nothing but panic as she looked at the still-open door; they were going to look inside and find the Super Mutant she just helped then they would kill him. It was an instinctive primal protectiveness that caused her to pull the table closer to the injured mutant only to pale. He was too large for the table to hide him fully which was just great. Feeling far too done with the day to care about repercussions she moved toward the door.

Giving him a warning look she motioned for him to be silent as she tried to steel herself. What was she doing? Saving the mutant was one thing but protecting him was another. It would cross a line that there was no way to undo. Trying to think of a way to avoid a fight she frowned before smirking. What if she led them away from the room? Even without her semblance, she was still faster than most humans. All she had to do was get their attention how better to do that than to step right into their line of sight. Waiting until she heard chuckling, she pulled up her scarf to cover her nose and mouth before stepping out of the room.

Her feet froze in place as the world around her went quiet; faces twisted in shock the four people in front of her did the same. Four people had cleared this tower; were they radioactive superheroes or something. Still, no matter how amazing they were, she was better. For a second none of them moved, then she winked at them and pulled a Blake. Spinning Ruby bolted for the exit. Rushing away from them she barely wasted a second to hear if they were following before she smirked. Boots crashing down onto the tiled floor she heard someone shout not to shoot before a bullet hit the wall in front of her.

Now they were shooting at her, great, she was going to die in a tower littered with bodies all because she was too empathetic. Fuck that. As one of the last survivors of Remnant, she wouldn't die unless it was to one of her own. These people could go screw themselves; hell, if she wanted to she could probably stop running and kill them herself. Well, that was arrogant, Hancock would scold her if he knew what she'd just thought.

The distraction was going great until she spun around the corner. Cursing she felt her foot slide as she slipped on the pool of blood she'd investigated earlier. It was almost as if karma was getting her back for being arrogant. She probably shouldn't have forgotten about the pool of blood. Yelping she rolled to the side to avoid twisting her ankle. Wincing her eyes widened as she impacted the railing of the stairs; well her shoulder was going to hurt in the morning. Reaching up to check on her head she sighed in relief; at least she didn't hit her head. Pulling down her scarf she ran a gentle hand over the back of her neck to check for any injury before relaxing only to tense. Cursing she glanced up barely seeing her pursuers clear the corner. Pushing herself up she gripped the railing as her hood fell. The guns trained on her were not something she wanted to go off. Tightening her grip on the railing she met the blue eyes of the man in front of her.

"Listen we're not your enemy," he said stepping forward. So, he was the ringleader; she could tell he was more diplomatic than his companions. Biting her lip, she kept herself from saying something sarcastic like she wanted too; she'd spent way too much time with Kellogg. Narrowing her eyes, she studied his group before she shrunk back, mainly in confusion, her eyes locked over his shoulder at the Super Mutant following him. Seeing her look, he said, "Strong's not your enemy either I promise. So why don't we just calm down and talk about this?"

"Clarke, she could be a raider," the man beside him snapped causing her eyes to narrow. Okay, that was insulting. It was either escape or punch that man in the face for comparing her to a raider. Glaring at him she twisted barely hesitating as she jumped over the railing. For a moment it felt like she was flying then her feet hit the ground and she rolled forward.

"Macready," Clarke snapped his tone scolding. Rushing forward he gripped the railing as he looked down expecting to see her broken on the floor below but instead, she was dusting off her arms.

"Neat," his sister said amazement in her tone. Looking to where he was leaning against the rail his twin smirked saying, "I didn't know people could survive that."

"They can't, Kandy," he stated. Seeing the woman look up he didn't hesitate to meet her silver eyes; memorizing her face he raised an eyebrow. He had a feeling that this wasn't the last time they would be seeing her. As if reading his mind, she gave him a two-finger salute before jumping out one of the broken windows she vanished into the ruins.

Ruby took a deep breath trying to steady her shaking hands. Leaning against the wall of a building a few yards away she reached up to touch her shoulder. A laugh brushed past her lips as realized she was still the same reckless little kid that she used to be. The warrior who fought for justice still existed, it was surprising honestly, she'd never expected to find a part of herself that she'd forgotten even existed. Pushing away from the wall she couldn't keep the smile from her face as she headed back to Mercury.

Opening his eyes as Ruby entered the ruined building, he took in her appearance slowly. She seemed lighter than when she left but looking her over, he noted the blood under her nails and the smear on her forehead. Her scouting mission was more interesting than he'd thought it would be and from her joy-filled silver eyes though he could tell she was happier. Deciding that she would tell him later if she wanted to he put it out of his mind.

"All clear," he asked gaining a nod. Smirking he stood before holding out her rifle for her to take with a bright smile she took it without hesitation. Taking a chance, he patted her shoulder before nudging Cait with his foot. The fighter growled at him before opening her eyes slowly while Ruby went to wake her charges with a bounce in her step.


	5. Diamond City

Ruby wanted to punch the mayor in the face before tossing him out the window but even then, she thought he might bounce instead of dying. The fat man was alternating between praising her efforts and asking if it was necessary to bring back the traders. His hypocrisy was so damning that she felt rage begin to fester in her heart. It was taking all her restraint not to kill him; people would believe it was an accident since sweet quiet Ruby could never commit cold-blooded murder. Still, she kept the serene smile on her face as he talked. He had no idea she was planning over thirty ways to kill him in under a minute. The guards, however, had some self-preservation; sensing the malicious aura coming off the small woman they inched away from her. If she had a shorter leash on her temper, then he would already be dead.

"Are we done here," she asked softly. The sweat slightly murderous smile on her face was enough to make him stop talking. Closing his mouth with an audible click he winced a little.

Without waiting for an answer, she took the bag of caps off his desk slipping it into her messenger bag. Sending him one last warning look she stalked from the room and slammed the door behind her. She wanted to kill him or at least maim him until he lost his voice. Stepping onto the lift she shook out her shoulders before realizing that she hadn't told him about Trinity Tower. Well, there was no way she would go back into that office today.

Taking the lift down to ground level she found Mercury with her gaze; the man was leaning against the railing just watching the people walking around the market. She knew that he was thinking about possible hiding places and blind spots he could exploit and with Cait standing beside him he posed an intimidating picture. Making a mental note to get the woman some better weapons Ruby sighed before moving toward them. Coming to a stop beside him she relaxed when he turned his attention away from Diamond City Surplus.

"How'd it go," he asked his eyes flickering to her face for a moment. The scoff that left her lips let him know exactly how it went.

"I hate that pig-headed arrogant ass," she said her voice barely above being a growl. He smirked amusement in his eyes.

"I've never seen you this angry before, well except when you fought Tyrian the second time," he said. Ruby rolled her eyes and pinned him a sullen glare.

Cait raised an eyebrow at the new name but said nothing as her new contract owner seemed to grow happier at his own words. Instead, she was mesmerized by the fury shining in Ruby's silver eyes, she'd known that the woman was dangerous, but with the expression of pure hate on her face, she looked the part.

Humming as he remembered the fight Mercury grinned at her. That had been the one battle he'd happily cheered her on during, he'd hated the scorpion and by the time she'd killed him Cinder had thought of half a dozen ways to murder the golden-eyed man, most of them involved fire. His sister had been a pyro. Looking up at the glass window of the mayor's office he asked, "Want me to kill him for you?"

They would never see him coming and he would do the job for free. The offer should not have been as tempting as it was; the urge to say that she did was overwhelming. Sighing she shook her head, no matter how much she hated the man he was the only thing holding this city together. However, if she didn't have a house here, she would have taken him up on the offer. It would certainly make some of the ghouls in Goodneighbor happy.

"Maybe later," she stated causing him to chuckle. Matching the smirk that tugged at his lips with her own she tilted her head saying, "So now that we have time, let's go get some new armor and weapons for you and Cait."

Nodding he followed the girl through the streets making sure to stay close to her, getting lost was not something he wanted to happen right now. Ruby had changed; the girl he remembered from remnant would have never even considered taking him up on his offer. Of course, he'd betrayed that girl, and helped destroy the world on the orders of an immortal. Still, he thought that this Ruby was someone he could work with. Not only that but she didn't make him want to tear out his hair at her innocent naivete anymore.

The dark alleyway closed around them as Ruby led them deeper into the more savage districts of Diamond City. The very districts that people tried to pretend didn't exist by ignoring. There was no hesitation in her steps as she walked down the steps into the small clothing store run by an ex-Raider. Ignoring the people around her she smiled at the woman behind the counter before turning to Mercury and Cait.

"Go find something," she said before sitting down on the couch in the corner. Laying her rifle across her lap she took the opportunity to just watch him. She'd never thought she'd see any of them again but just when she starts to put the past behind her, he shows up. Now she was afraid he'd vanish into the shadows and never return.

In truth, Mercury was never the one she thought about when her mind turned to her fellow survivors. It was always Weiss she wanted to see because she knew the woman wouldn't leave her alone. Now however she felt happy that Weiss wasn't here to see the person she'd become. Mercury in a way was the perfect person to be her partner in this world. He was cold and ruthless in the exact way Kellogg was but unlike the mercenary, he was here.

Watching his reach out to pick up a jacket she eyed his arm and the scars she knew covered it. She knew Mercury was a killer; even before they'd cam to this world he was a murder with a kill count rivaling Tyrian Callows. Until their deal was over, she could trust him to watch her back, just like he could trust her. She would prove that he could trust her; although she had no idea how to prove such a thing.

Running his hand over the solid leather of a jacket he felt her eyes burning into his body. He didn't have to turn to know Ruby was watching him; it wasn't hard to notice that she made sure he didn't leave her sight. She wasn't exactly subtle in her actions; not that he could blame her. He could understand where she was coming from. He was afraid that she would leave him too. In truth, he hadn't thought Emerald's mission to find the others would bring anything but pain.

In a way she'd been right that the others would forgive them for their mistakes; well, in the case of Ruby at least. He had no doubt that Blake would try to kill him the instant she saw him; while Weiss would be a wild card. It was true that he'd done more to torment the ice queen than he had the cat, but Blake held a grudge longer. Weiss would follow Ruby's lead when they met up, however, Blake would disregard any order she didn't like. He also in no way believed that Blake wasn't able to find Ruby if she wanted too; the cat had literally tracked her team across a desert, there was no way she didn't know where Ruby was.

There was no doubt in his mind that Blake had abandoned her leader, or she was dead, but he was trying not to think about the cat being dead. Not that he cared if she'd gotten herself killed over the last four years. There was evidence of Blake running away whenever her life got a little bit too hard; the fall of Beacon, Adam, and White Fang revolt were just those he could think of off the top of his head. He was not however going to mention his theory to Ruby; he had a little more tact than that. He was trying to get her to trust him not kick his ass across the wasteland. Telling a person who used to have separation anxiety that they were abandoned was not a good idea; especially if he was going to keep living.

Offering her a small smile, he was amused when she looked away from him quickly. He knew their partnership was off to a great start when she couldn't even look him in the eye for more than five seconds. A long time had gone by since he'd worked with someone new, and despite knowing how she fought he expected that it wouldn't be very easy for them to get used to one another. Running a hand through his hair he turned his attention back to clothes shopping; while praising every god he could think of Emerald wasn't here for this shopping trip and tried to formulate a plan for gaining her trust. He loved his sister but even he could admit that she was horrible when clothes shopping.

Staring down at the rifle in her lap Ruby felt the selfish desire to reassure him that everything was going to be okay. She wanted to say it was only going to get better from here, but she couldn't; there was too much that could go wrong in such a short amount of time. First, they had to find Emerald, even if she didn't like the green-haired girl, no one deserved to be captured by Raiders. Then they would have to deal with the consequences of their decision to save the woman. Ruby had no doubt that despite her captors being Raiders there would be consequences for attacking their stronghold. Letting her hand drift over the solid metal of her rifle she couldn't help but remember what it was like to watch her friends die one by one in a war that she didn't ask for. Everything had gone to hell so fast that she couldn't keep up.

Sitting here she was reminded that this was a far more savage world than the one she'd left behind; every day she was forced to choose between death or survival. She'd always chosen to live, but sometimes when she was alone, she wanted to let it all come to an end. In some cold part of her mind, she was happy that Remnant was gone. It might make her sound selfish but the thought of living in a world where she'd fought and lost was not something she wanted to entertain; coming here to this world was like being given a chance to start over. No matter where she went through, she only wanted her friends back so to find him was like the universe telling her not to give up.

Sending a troubled look at the two Cait could admit that she found them confusing. It was obvious that they cared about each other, but they were also afraid of hurting each other. She knew that there were times the woman disagreed with his choices, except she never said anything. Ruby just accepted his decisions without trying to talk him out of them in the same way that Mercury himself never made a single movement without overthinking the consequences. It was obvious from the way she watched him that Ruby was afraid he would leave her. Despite his fear of hurting her Mercury kept close to her and Cait had noticed him checking her over for injuries when Ruby wasn't looking.

Noticing that Mercury was walking over to sit beside Ruby; she grabbed a black jacket and gloves before shifting over to where the two were. The only way for her to understand them was to listen in and watch them closely. This man might hold her contract, but she wasn't about to die for him just because he ordered her too.

"You never did tell me where your team went," Mercury said bluntly. Seeing her flinch and tighten her grip on her weapon he wondered if he'd made a mistake by speaking up.

"I don't know where they are," she said. While he could hear her discomfort; she still answered him.

"Jaune joined the Minutemen, we saw him a couple of months ago," he told her. It was the only thing he could offer her; the last time he'd seen the knight had been before the Quincy massacre so he didn't actually know if the man was still alive or not, but telling her would at least give her a little hope. It wouldn't surprise him if Jaune was alive, seeing as how Jaune was a little bit tougher than he was on Remnant.

"Oh, I guess he didn't look for me either," she said softly the pain in her voice unmistakable. Mercury winced and resisted the urge to bang his head against the wall; he'd wanted to make her feel better and somehow had made it worse Emerald was right, he was horrible at this whole comforting thing.

"Emerald did, she wanted to get everyone back together, I guess she got sick of being around just me," he said trying to cheer her up. She was his partner now; he didn't want her to be sad. When she simply raised an eyebrow he sighed saying, "she wanted to make sure you were all okay."

"Well at least one of you wanted to find the others," she said dryly.

Her comment was almost the definition of passive-aggressive. There was the girl he remembered; the little rose still had thorns. Mercury opened his mouth to compliment her when she shrank in on herself. The grip she had on her rifle tightened as she shifted away from him causing him to stiffen. Was Ruby afraid of him? What had he done to make her afraid and how the hell did he fix it? Right, well, he guessed it was time to take a page out of Emerald's book and talk about feelings.

"Are you okay," he asked reluctantly. The words snapped her out of her timid reaction allowing her to pin him with an emotionless stare.

"What do you mean," she asked. From the tension in her shoulders, he knew he was pushing a button that he really shouldn't, but he wanted to know why she was afraid of him.

"I didn't sign on to have an idiot for a partner," he said making sure to keep his voice even. He didn't want it to sound like he was snapping at her. He just wished that she would tell him that she was alright. Taking a calming breath, he said, "We both know that you're not good with being alone. Are you okay?"

She was about to snap at him that she was fine, and nothing was wrong when she stopped herself. The look in his eyes was too genuine to be fake, yet he had no real reason to care about her. He was trying, however, despite their past he was trying to help her. He wanted her to talk to him, but she was scared. She didn't want to trust him only for him to turn around and hurt her, yet he was trying. There was no way for anything to change unless she tried to understand him too. It seemed that the first step to building that understanding was, to be honest with each other.

"No, I'm scared," she admitted. Unable to look him in the eyes she stared down at the weapon in her lap. It hurt to admit she was terrified of what the future would bring.

"Ruby-"

"I'm not stupid, the second we find Emerald you're going to leave with her, and I'll be all alone again," she said before he could try reassuring her. Standing she slung her rifle over her shoulder signaling the end of the conversation. She didn't want to talk anymore; especially about this subject.

Narrowing his eyes at her words he resisted the urge to grab her wrist and continue the conversation, instead, he groaned. He had to accept that convincing her he wouldn't leave her alone was going to take more than just words. Accepting her choice to end the conversation he stood slowly only to hold back a wince as pain traveled up his leg. Picking up the bundle of clothes he'd picked Mercury motioned for Cait to follow as Ruby led the way to the checkout.

Ten minutes later, they were walking through the streets in new clothes as she led them to a weapons dealer. Apparently, she'd decided that their current weapons were insufficient which he could honestly agree with. It would be nice to have weapons that weren't stolen from dead bodies. Looking at her back he sighed when she moved away from their group. Looking through the stacks and shelves of weaponry with half attention he made sure to keep an eye on her conversation.

Arturo was smirking at her as he watched his new customers shift through his stock. He'd never expected her to bring someone home with her; especially due to her usual antisocial behavior. From the uncomfortable expression on her face, he knew this was an unexpected development for her too; that wouldn't save her from the teasing that was to come. As if sensing her thoughts he stifled a chuckle; he couldn't wait until Kellogg came back and found out that she'd made friends.

"You brought back stays," he said raising an eyebrow in their direction. Seeing her twitch he reached under his counter pulling out bullets for her pistol. Taking them she offered him a small thankful smile and reached into her bag for money.

"I knew Mercury before I came to Diamond City," she said without really explaining anything. The man nodded before glancing over at her friend with distrust.

"Is he a thief," he asked when the man picked up one of the guns to examine it. Ruby couldn't help the chuckle that passed her lips; while Mercury might be many things, he was not a thief. Handing over the bag of money; she gave him a wicked smirk.

"The thief is his sister," she said lightly. She waited just until Arturo relaxed before saying, "he's the butcher."

Almost choking Arturo faltered before sending her a glare. He knew that she'd waited on purpose and that this was her way of messing with him. Sighing as her two strays walked over to join their conversation he glanced at the grey-haired man. He might not know much about Ruby's past, but the girl wasn't from the commonwealth; he'd managed to learn that much when Kellogg had introduced them four years ago. If he was a lesser man, then he would have accused the wide-eyed skittish woman of being a synth, but Ruby was his friend; no matter how much they might tease each other. There was also the fact he wasn't a racist idiot. A customer was a customer and he wouldn't even care if they were a Super Mutant if they had money.

"I prefer assassin actually," Mercury corrected as he handed her the pistol he'd picked out, with Cait right behind him. In his more bloodthirsty moments, he loved the title he'd gotten as the Butcher of Atlas, sadly this was not one of those moments.

Nodding at the correction Ruby made sure not to look him in the eyes as she listened to Arturo tell her the total cost of their weapons. Quickly handing over the money she didn't miss the look of curiosity Arturo sent Mercury. In the time he'd known her she'd never been seen with a man, except Kellogg, outside of the occasional drinking game; for her to be so open with someone was new, especially since she let him close to her.

"So dinner at the noodle stand before heading to my house," she asked Mercury. Looking up at him she didn't notice the familiar eyes on her back.

Cait shivered as the feeling of being watched became almost overwhelming. Glancing around the redhead took a step near her contract owner her hand going to the machete sheathed at her waist. When Mercury shot her a look, she knew that he'd noticed the feeling as well. Gripping the handle of her weapon the cage fighter spotted the dark curious eyes watching them from across the street. Almost hissing she glanced at Ruby to find the woman resting a hand on her pistol.

Hearing a shout, the three jolted in surprise and turned toward the sound. Near the noodle stand a man was pointing his gun at another as he ranted about synths. Ruby narrowed her eyes as the guards started to close in if nothing was done, they would kill him. There was a strict no violence law in the city; the reason never mattered with them. Arturo sucked in a breath his eyes landing on the small form of his daughter standing just a few feet away from the standoff.

"Red," he said gaining her attention.

The breathless terrified tone of his voice gained her attention immediately and following his gaze Ruby almost growled. Handing her bag to Mercury she gave Cait her rifle before she stalked forward. Raising her hand into the air she motioned for the guards to stand down as she moved to stand in front of the unarmed man. The guards backed off slightly. Lowering their guns, they decided to let her handle it.

"Stand down," she ordered the command causing the crowd to fall silent. Ruby gave him a moment to process her orders before tilting her head; she hoped that he would follow her order but she didn't believe that he would. Seeing him tighten his grip on his gun she reacted.

Once upon a time, petals would have drifted to the ground as she rushed forward, now all she became was a red blur as her scarf flowed out behind her. Her quick movement caught him off guard, but she didn't give him a chance to regain his composure. Gripping the man's wrist, she directed his gun upward as he pulled the trigger. The sound of the gunshot echoed in the air for a moment before she was kicking his ankle and flipping him over her shoulder.

Mercury laughed as she pinned the man to the ground and twisted his wrist until he released his weapon. Once the weapon hit the ground she looked up, keeping her knee in the center of his back, she found Nina's gaze. The child stared back at her for a moment before following Ruby's eyes when she looked back at Arturo. Nodding in confirmation the girl didn't waste any time rushing back to her father's side causing Ruby to sigh in relief.

Releasing the man, she was holding slowly she stood making sure to keep an eye on him just in case he did anything else. Knowing that all eyes were on her she reached up to adjust her scarf, the action letting Mercury know just how nervous she was at being in the spotlight. Instead of allowing her anxiety to overcome her she forced a smirk onto her face. Stepping away to return to her group she stilled when the man started reaching for his weapon again. With an annoyed expression, she reacted by slamming the heel of her boot into the man's head knocking him out.

"If you have an issue, take it outside the city," she stated as a warning to both the man and any others who wanted to start trouble. Making eye contact with the guards she gave them a stiff nod before walking back to Mercury. The amusement in his eyes was almost overwhelming but she knew he wasn't being malicious. Turning away from him she motioned for him to follow as she led the way back to her house; there were far more people around than she was willing to deal with. Mercury sent one last taunting smirk to the gathered crowd before he did so, but not before handing her bag over to Cait and letting the woman be their baggage handler; the look of pure annoyance she sent him was worth it.

Opening the door to her house Ruby relaxed finally for the first time since leaving it, she waited until Mercury and Cait entered to shut the door. With the trouble at the Noodle stand, she was betting she'd have to make dinner. Grabbing her bag and rifle from Cait offered the woman a small smile that the woman returned. Moving toward her workshop, Ruby laid her things on her table as she took a moment to think.

Jaune was alive and with the Minutemen; not that she knew much about the Minutemen. The only thing she knew about them was pertaining to the Quincy massacre, but she didn't want to think about that. She knew why Jaune hadn't come looking for her, and it hurt, he wanted a fresh start without the reminders of the past. A life without all of them to remind him of what he lost; she wasn't worth being around if all he remembered was Pyrrha. Clutching her scarf, she took a deep breath trying to calm herself down. What if her team never looked for her because she wasn't worth it?

Wincing at the thought, she shrugged off her jacket and disarmed herself of everything but her knife; she couldn't afford to think about them right now. She had too much to do to allow herself to fall apart. Crying could come later when she was alone. Turning around she placed a fake smile on her face to hide how much she was falling apart. Looking at her guests she took a moment to glare in annoyance. Mercury was sitting on her couch, which she was fine with, except his dirty shoes were on her coffee table.

Fingers twitching Ruby took a deep breath and let it go. She wasn't about to start an argument about something as stupid as her coffee table. Turning her attention to Cait she watched the woman rush to her small kitchen area. Ruby had no idea if she'd remembered to restock her food supplies before she'd left.

"Do either of you know how to cook," Cait asked as she opened the fridge to find it empty. Ruby twitched in guilt realizing that she hadn't restocked her food storage. When neither one responded she sighed saying, "I'll go buy us something to eat."

The second she exited the house Ruby sighed and reached for the small toolbox beside her desk. Usually, she kept it there for small repairs and other tinkering projects, but Mercury could most likely use it to fix his legs. Carrying it out of the workshop to Mercury she laid it down on the coffee table.

"Seriously," he asked amusement in his voice as she placed it down.

"Fix your legs," she said not backing down as he looked into her eyes. Tilting his head Mercury leaned back a dry chuckle passing his lips. When he nodded, she relaxed a small smile appearing on her face. Backing away from him she said, "I'll go take a shower then."


	6. Call to War

_Blood and gunpowder filled her nose as she struggled to hold onto the railing of the airship with one hand as screaming filled the once silent air chasing away what was supposed to be a peaceful night. Ignoring the tears stinging her eyes she never looked away as the floating city lay crumbled and shattered on the ground. Hundreds and thousands of bodies lay unmoving in the rubble and each one filled her heart with guilt. Flames scorching the once pristine metal, leaving blackened shards behind as a reminder of what once was an amazing city. They hadn't been ready for this, no one could have been ready for a horde of grimm and mass murders. Still, she didn't look away even as blood flowed down the side of her head staining her pale skin as a reminder of her own weakness. This was her fault; she should have been faster, stronger, better, or even just more ruthless._

_Faunus and human bodies littered the ground bellow and she knew even without seeing that Sun, oh God Sun, was among them. He'd come to help with faunus relations as a White Fang representative but now he was dead. They'd tried so hard to stop Watt's and Tyrian, but all this destruction wasn't on them. She'd saved Watt's when she should have just let him die. If she'd been better than none of this would have happened, everything was her fault just like always. Her hold on the ship gave out as she crumbled to her knees beside her father's still body._

_Everything was always her fault; her and her bleeding heart. Hearing Weiss sob she dropped her head furious tears falling from her eyes mixing with the blood on the floor. She had to do better, be stronger, act faster, but most of all she had to kill the kindness in her heart._

She'd always found it funny how opening her eyes in the morning felt like she was falling into a nightmare; except that feeling was less potent this morning. The feeling wasn't completely gone but it wasn't pressing down on her chest like it was going to strangle her. Walking down the stairs that morning she startled when she saw Mercury passed out on her couch. For just a moment she couldn't figure out why he was there, then she remembered everything from the day before. Rushing down the stairs before she could have a mental breakdown, she entered the bathroom and tried to pretend she wasn't hiding.

Splashing water on her face she breathed out a heavy sigh before straightening. Opening her eyes Ruby stared at the dull silver looking back at her or that was what she'd expected. There was a spark of life in her eyes that hadn't been there yesterday. The face in the mirror might as well belong to a stranger; she was so sure that nothing more of that little girl who'd played at war was still inside her, yet after yesterday she felt different. It was almost as if she finally had something to live for other than herself. Shutting off the faucet of the sink she dried her face with a towel before leaving the bathroom.

Mercury was still asleep on the couch with Cait curled up on the floor a few feet away, when she walked out of the bathroom. Grabbing her jacket, she slipped her knife into her holster before deciding that being around him was too much for now. Leaving a note on the coffee table she walked out the door making sure to lock it behind her. If they were going after Emerald, then they would need supplies; much more so then she could stuff into her messenger bag, but luckily, she knew just where to get them. The sky was still dark above her, as she walked through the streets, yet none of the guards spared her a glance, as she made her way toward the closed marketplace.

They would be going against Raiders to get the green-haired woman back, and as stupid as they were, she still wanted insurance to incase anything went wrong. Usually, most fights went wrong; very wrong. As such the grenades and mines she was buying would come in handy for setting traps, a few dozen boxes of ammo for Mercury's weapon and some knives to make sure she would never be unarmed. Despite all the ammo and explosives, she was buying it wasn't an assured victory, but it would make everything easier. She was no longer the child who ran into battle without a plan.

Three people couldn't storm a raider stronghold and survive unless they were wearing full power armor and had miniguns. Everything about the situation was rigged against them; all the bullets in the world wouldn't keep them alive, so what they needed were allies. Preferably ones who wouldn't stab them in the back for all the loot that the Raiders were sure to have. She would have to buy mercenary help even if she had spent most of her money buying enough grenades to blow up Diamond City. Nick was still off looking into that missing person case, and Kellogg hadn't come back to the city from whatever hell he walked into.

Her only option was to make friends or blackmail people; neither option was very appealing. For once she hated the isolation, she'd enjoyed during her time here. Even after all these years, she was terrible at making friends mainly due to her antisocial habits. Put her in a war meeting and she would do just fine but having nice conversations with people was like poison. Tugging on her scarf she entered the bar without hesitation. The scent of beer hitting her nose was unpleasant, but she ignored it completely.

"Red, Nice to see you come on over lapochka," Vadim shouted to get her attention. The Russian man was waving wildly from the bar as if he hadn't seen her for years. Blinking she tilted her head when all attention was on her, but the patrons quickly looked away once they realized it was her. An amused smile appeared on her face as she walked toward the cheery bartender.

"Vadim, it's good to see you again, glad to see you haven't been kidnaped again," she said sitting down at the bar. Resting her arms on the bar, she smirked when his brother snorted. The last time she'd seen him had been after saving him from Raiders. How the man got caught in the first place she didn't really know.

"It was only one time," he said. The slightly embarrassed tone causing her to hold back a laugh. Smiling he asked, "Now red, is there a reason you're here? We both know you don't drink."

"I need hired muscle," she said. Both brothers shared a confused yet understanding look. If she was asking them then she must be desperate. She never asked for help mainly because she always had that mysterious benefactor of hers.

"Finally planning a hostile takeover of the city," Yefim asked softly. He wouldn't be surprised if she was after all her hate of the mayor was a well-known fact.

"No. A friend of mine was captured by Raiders," she said.

"But we saw Arturo and his daughter yesterday," Vadim said. The serious expression on his face couldn't hide his teasing tone. Flushing, she glared at him a pout forming on her face; she should've known they would tease her.

"He's not my only friend," she snapped but the pout on her face did nothing to assure them of that fact. The cold truth was that despite these years of knowing her, they'd never seen her bring anyone new to Diamond city.

"A group came in yesterday, they might help," Yefim said before his brother could tease her anymore. Ruby stilled her mind flashing back to the group she'd met yesterday; they couldn't be the same people, could they?

"What did they look like, how many were there, what weapons did they have," she asked leaning toward them.

"Four people, three humans, and a Super Mutant. The dark-haired man was apparently the leader, but we didn't see their weapons. Still whatever you're planning would be easier with a Super Mutant," Yefim told her noticing for a moment how her eyes hardened before she sighed and relaxed.

"Where are they," she asked in defeat.

"Sleeping. None of them have left their rooms yet so you have time," he said when he noticed how exasperated she was at the description. Nodding Ruby slid off the barstool and dusted off her pants.

"Tell them a potential client is going to meet them here tonight," she ordered as she turned toward the door. Both brothers smirked, for the first time since meeting her, they could see the will to live in her; it was nice to know that she wasn't planning on wasting away in that house all by herself anymore.

Mercury was trusting her to help get Emerald back and she wouldn't disappoint him, even if it meant he would leave her once this was all over; she'd been alone this long she could continue being alone if that was what it took to save Emerald. It confused her why she cared so much about Emerald, they were enemies, but that war was done and the woman waiting for rescue was one of the last remaining survivors of Remnant.

Remnant. An amused smirk twisted across her face as she realized they were remnants of Remnant. If they were here the others would help, wouldn't they? At least they would help her; Mercury was a different story altogether. Sighing she entered her house the scent of cooking food distracting her somewhat as Cait walked around her small kitchen like she owned the place. Raising an eyebrow, she shrugged her bag off her shoulder and passed it to Mercury as she sat down on the couch beside him.

He flickered his eyes to her before obeying the silent order and looking through her bag. The amusement she could feel radiating off him wasn't surprising as he took in the number of explosives she'd managed to gather. Lips twitching into a dark smirk he wondered just how much of this she expected to use.

"We need to go to the bar tonight," she said. The words surprised him and for a moment he remembered just who her father was; the old man had a horrible habit of getting drunk before missions. He hoped that Ruby had skipped inheriting that habit.

"Planning on getting drunk," he asked hoping that it would make her smile. The frown tugging across her lips was the opposite of what he'd been looking for as she instead, she looked away from him. Why was it so hard to understand this girl?

"No," she said. That was something that her father would have done, and the reminder hurt her more than she was willing to admit. Playing with her scarf she said, "We're hiring help."

"Mercenaries," he guessed. It wasn't a profession that he'd ever tried, although his father could be counted as one. He doubted whoever they hired would be of any use other than a meat shield, but numbers were numbers.

"Yes, although there are other options," she said. When she finally turned to look him in the eyes, he knew what she wanted to do. The reluctant hope in her eyes wasn't something he wanted to admit made him uncomfortable.

"You want to summon the others to help," he said with skepticism in his voice. While he doubted the others would even think of coming to help him, he knew they might come to help her.

"Well we can't go it alone," she said. Worry and fear to tangle with some annoyance that he couldn't pinpoint the cause of in her voice. She hid it well, but he knew that she was afraid of something.

"They wouldn't get here in time," he said. A dark frown passed his face at the thought of seeing them again. He still remembered what happened the last time he'd met the others but for her, he supposed he could weather the hurricane of emotions. Sighing he decided to warn her by saying, "plus I doubt Golden boy would want to help me."

Ruby tensed at the nickname, she knew that Jaune hated Cinder and every one the woman had cared for; Mercury was sadly one of the few people. For Jaune to hate him so much didn't match with the boy she'd first met, but it did match the man he'd become due to the war. Even she had been hard-pressed to curb Jaune's ruthlessness after Ren died. Resisting the urge to shiver at the thought of what this world could've done to her brother, she tried to relax.

"He's still mad at you," she asked. She didn't quite know why but she felt like it was an understatement.

"He shoved a sword in my face and threatened to drown me in radioactive water," he said. The deadpan tone didn't quiet the laughter that shook her shoulders; covering her mouth she didn't even try to hide her amusement. Imagining Jaune threatening someone like Mercury was amusing.

"They would still come if I called," she said. Yet there was a fear that she was trying to desperately hide; there was no evidence that they would come to help her. Part of her doubted that they would even consider coming if she called.

She wanted to think that they would come because they were her team, yet in the end, she knew there was more to this than just what she wanted to believe. Emerald was in danger and they were playing with her life at the moment. So much was riding on this and going in blind would be foolish. Hoping for someone to come and save them was foolish, so why did she wish that they were here.

"Yeah," he said. They were her team and he knew they would come for her even if she herself doubted it. Frowning he asked, "But would they help save Em, after what we did to them?"

They'd helped kill hundreds of people at Atlas, hell, he'd reveled in the chaos they'd caused until it wasn't fun anymore. Once the gods had returned nothing had mattered anymore but survival, even allegiance wasn't as important as survival. Not that joining forces had made much sense. Still, he'd killed people that they cared for and that couldn't be ignored. Ironwood had been particularly hard to assassinate, and he wouldn't pretend to be ashamed of that when it was his proudest moment.

Cait frowned from her place beside the stove but she didn't speak up. From what she could gather about the man holding her contract was that he wasn't a good person, but this conversation told her that these two had been enemies. Or that the girl had sat on the sidelines and allowed something horrible to happen which she doubted. Flickering her eyes to Ruby she watched the girl's eye twitch, for a moment it seemed like she wanted to argue but then her shoulders slumped.

"I don't know," she said finally. He saw the hope fading from her eyes and found that he didn't like that.

"How would you even contact them," he asked. As far as he knew their scrolls didn't work here; he'd actually tried his a few times since coming here, but it never worked.

"Get Travis to send a coded message over the radio," she said. The option was one she'd thought about using for years now yet every time she'd thought about it, she felt afraid that they wouldn't come to help her.

"Why now," he asked. If they got out a message then they could summon the others, but he could feel the anxiety radiating off her.

"I-," cutting herself off Ruby took a deep breath. She wouldn't admit she was afraid of their reactions to seeing her again. If they rejected her then she didn't know what she would do, so instead, she said, "We need help. It's a better idea than looking for them one by one."

Mercury had spent a lot of time studying her during the war; it had been his job to watch them closely, but he'd never seen her this afraid. Most wouldn't notice but the way her nails dug into the fabric of her scarf was telling. He knew what made her afraid, it was easy to see that she wanted everything to be storybook happy. She wanted her team to come back, but he doubted it would work out the way she wanted it to; their lives were too complicated to be called happy. Cinder had called her naive, he could admit that he thought the same. Still, she was right that they needed help.

"Put out a call on the radio if you want to," he said. The way her shoulders slumped in relief made him feel sort of guilty as he realized despite everything, he'd done to her, she still trusted him. Turning away from her he said, "I trust you, Ruby. Don't make me regret that."

"Meet me at the bar later," she said. She didn't acknowledge the admission, but the hand she put on his shoulder told him she wouldn't allow herself to lose his trust. Standing she took the kabab Cait offered her before vanishing from the house.

Mercury watched her go with hardened eyes. She didn't let it show but he knew she was affected by the past; a past they shared. Every moment they saw each other as a reminder of everything they lost but she hadn't told him to leave. The pain was written all over her face when she thought he wasn't looking so he knew she was hurting from all the memories. She should hate him for everything but the moment he promised never to leave her, she'd decided to cling to him. She needed him, just like he needed her; they were both a reminder and a promise that they were still alive after fighting gods. Even without their aura, they were stronger than normal humans so surviving was easy, yet living was the hard part.

They were survivors of an apocalypse, and it showed on their souls. He doubted that they would ever lead normal lives or at least non-chaotic ones. He'd tried before finding Em, but being a farmer just wasn't enough for him. He would never be satisfied with a life without violence, he doubted any of the others would either.

(Ruby)

Entering the small shed where Travis ran the radio station; she twitched in discomfort at the enclosed space. The building had always made her feel claustrophobic, but she didn't mind very much. If the shed made him feel safe, then she didn't care about how it made her feel. The kid was a good person even if he was skittish enough to run from a kitten. Of course, her calling him a kid wasn't much given the fact he was two years older than she was.

"Travis, I need a favor," she said before he could start whining about her entering his sanctuary; the last time she'd let him whine it had lasted hours. The dark glance he gave her really didn't help make him look dangerous, instead, he looked like a pouting dog. A very long-faced un-cute dog.

"What is it," he asked. The wariness in his voice causing her to raise an eyebrow; he really did not trust her, did he? Well, she couldn't really blame him.

"I just need you to record a message and broadcast it over the radio," she said. The wary expression turned to distrust, and she could see the gears turning in his head as he tried to figure out who she wanted to contact. Giving him a moment to think she leaned against the door waiting.

"I-"

"200 caps," she said cutting off the refusal he was about to utter. It would take far too long to convince him, and she didn't have time for games. They had to leave by tonight if they wanted to catch up to the Raiders who took Emerald. She was hoping that they could catch them outside their base so the battle would be easier, but she doubted they would.

"Alright," he said holding out his hands for the money. Rolling her eyes, she took the small coin purse from the inside of her jacket and tossed it to him. He fumbled but to her surprise managed to catch the bag before it could hit the floor. The man didn't even bother counting the money before motioning to the recording device on his desk. Ruffling his hair, which she knew he hated, she moved toward it. There were only a hundred and fifty caps in the small coin purse, but he didn't need to know that; she doubted he would care if he did.

(Mercury)

The bar of Diamond City honestly made him miss Juniors. It was dirty, the tables were scruffy, and it had watered down beer; none of which made him like the place any more than it made him like the dust on Ruby's coffee table. The only thing he did like was the dark corner table he'd managed to snag that faced the door being able to hide in the shadows again was nice. Tapping his foot against the floor he barely paid attention to Cait as she sneered at one of the thugs.

They were both waiting on Ruby and the mercenaries she wanted to hire to arrive. The woman came rushing in like a blur of red that caught everyone's attention. Years before she would have balked under the gazes and retreated into herself; however, now she didn't even seem fazed. It was slowly dawning on him how different this woman was to the little girl he tricked and betrayed. A dark, sadistic, part of him wondered how she would react to being stabbed in the back right now. Would she kill him or let it go? The sadistic urge to find out was almost overwhelming as she slid into the seat across from him.

"Your plotting," she said. The amusement in her tone soothed his annoyance somewhat.

"And you've learned my tells," he said. The upward tilt of her lips was the only response he got as the bartender led a group of four in their direction. Narrowing his eyes Mercury frowned when he noticed the suspicious glances being thrown in Ruby's direction. Not the girl noticed, or outwardly acknowledged at least, as she studied them in turn.

"Red, I brought those minions you wanted to hire," Vadim said. The proud expression on his face was the only reason she didn't snap at the man for calling them her minions. What were the odds that the very people she ran into outside the city would be who he chose to help her? Still, help was help, even if she didn't like the distrustful glances being sent at her. Hearing Mercury snort in amusement she rolled her eyes.

"Even here you can't escape that nickname," he said amusement dripping from his words. First Torchwick had given her it and even now the nickname wouldn't die at all. If he hadn't seen her fight before he wouldn't have noticed her tense, however, he had so it was easy to see her shoulders tighten minutely at his words, or maybe it was the scoff the lean man gave that made her tense.

"Better than Quicksilver at least," she said turning to glance at him. For a moment he couldn't place her tone then he saw the glint of humor in her eyes; the brat was teasing him. Amused he rolled his eyes as she turned her attention to the bartender. He had no idea where that nickname had even started.

"Thank you, Vadim. Would you also happen to have a map we could use," she asked. The man nodded and rushed away to get the map. Shaking her head with a fond look she turned her attention to the four watching her. Standing slowly, she motioned for them to sit saying, "I'm sure I can answer any questions you have once we discuss the job and your fee."

"Like what you were doing at Trinity Tower," the bearded man said nonchalantly. Taking a seat, he never took his eyes from the woman as Vadim returned. His team sat down around him while Ruby took the map from the man.

Giving a fake smile, she moved to stand beside Mercury as Vadim curiously stood on her other side. Taking the map from her Mercury spread it out on the table using empty shot glasses to hold down the edges. The highly detailed map of the commonwealth stared back at him mockingly causing him to hold back a growl. He had to find Emerald, he owed her too much to just let her die alone.

"What's the job," the brunet woman asked leaning back in her chair. The exhausted sigh her brother gave told them this was her normal attitude.

"A friend of ours was taken by raiders, we need extra guns to get her back before they grow tired of her," Ruby said bluntly causing Mercury to almost choke at the casual tone and phrasing. Ignoring him slightly she motioned for Vadim to get them drinks to which the man nodded and vanished to the bar. Patting Mercury's shoulder she said, "I'm Ruby, this is Mercury and Cait."

"I'm Clarke this is my sister Kandy and our companions Macready and Strong," Clarke said. The nod she gave him was the only acknowledgment he god as she turned her attention back to Mercury. It was obvious she was hoping he would take over the explanations, so she didn't have too.

"According to my sources, they're taking her to the Cordova power station for a monthly slave sale," he said. Feeling Ruby's grip tighten on his shoulder he frowned but didn't risk glancing up at her. With how close they were he could feel her unease yet there was nothing he could do to comfort her except getting this conversation over with. Narrowing his gaze, he said, "the sellers get there at least a week early so we should have time to rescue her."

"Worst case scenario is a building full of raider generals and lieutenants," Kandy said her eyes going to the silver-eyed woman. She still wanted to know how the girl survived jumping from that height and why she was in the building in the first place. This job wasn't any different than any other that they took, but it would take time away from the hunt for Kellogg. Sharing a glance with her brother she smirked giving her approval. She would rather take a job than hunt down the person who took her son, especially when she didn't even know if he was still alive.

"How much are you offering," Clarke asked.

"A thousand," Ruby said. Vadim returned just in time to hear that, his eyes widening as he set the drinks on the table.

(Weiss)

_"We are Remnants; by-products of forgotten history, yet now I call each of the survivors to leave behind the life's you've built to help one of our own. This is the Red Rose and I'm asking for your help even if I have no right to. This life we're living is built on the sacrifice of Cinder and we owe her to protect each other. You might hate me for asking this of you, but please meet me in Goodneighbor over the next four days if you wish to help."_

Recognizing the voice easily caused her to hesitate, her hands just barely catching the box of cigarettes before it fell from her hand. Staring down at them for a moment she let out a breathless laugh before slipping them back into her pocket. Laying her hand on the hilt of her sword she leaned back against the brick building behind her as the radio resumed playing music. Ruby was asking for help; there was no way she would let her down, or that was what she'd like to say.

It would be hard to get to her; there was in fact a ghoul infested town and who knows how many enemies between them. Hell, it was hard to just fend off the attacks on their current base and some of her men were injured. Well, she said some but there were only three left. Looking up at the cloud-filled night sky she frowned in thought. She supposed that going to a town would give her men time to heal. The soft smile that found its way onto her lips wasn't one she'd worn in years.


	7. Kings and Cats

_**"We are Remnants; by-products of forgotten history, yet now I call each of the survivors to leave behind the life's you've built to help one of our own. This is the Red Rose and I'm asking for your help even if I have no right to. This life we're living is built on the sacrifice of Cinder and we owe her to protect each other. You might hate me for asking this of you, but please meet me in Goodneighbor over the next four days if you wish to help."** _

__

Turning off the radio with an audible click, he moved to the balcony overlooking his territory. Ruby was once again challenging the status quo and calling them to action. It wasn't shocking that the girl would call for help but after four years he'd hoped that he wouldn't have to see the others again. The logical part of his mind reminded that he didn't have to answer her call, but it was Ruby. Despite all the trouble and horrible times, she'd never let him down. It was past time that he repaid the favor.

__

Running a hand through his blonde hair he frowned at the thought of dragging his men from their comfortable home into a battlefield. He wasn't a fool, if Ruby needed help then it would turn into a war. Could he really ask them to fight for the sake of a woman they didn't even know? No, but he couldn't abandon Ruby either.

__

"You're overthinking again," his second in command stated. Watching his King turn slowly the brunet man grinned. If it hadn't been for their King then they would have become Raiders after the Quincy massacre, instead, here they were a group of surviving, if not thriving, mercenaries. Tipping his hat in his leaders' direction he motioned to the radio asking, "I'm guessing from your reaction you know this Red Rose?"

__

"Her name is Ruby," he admitted.

__

"Your thinking about going aren't you," he asked. Watching his King walk back into the room, he glanced out at their water-filled backyard.

__

"No," he said trying to keep the lie from his voice. He knew that Ruby needed his help and he didn't want to disappoint her.

__

"Liar."

__

The word hung in the air between them for a moment before the blonde man laughed. This was what he got for allowing people to get close enough to learn his tells. Yes, he was lying, he wanted to go and help Ruby. The girl needed his help; his honor screamed at him to go find her. If the unimpressed glow on his second in commands face was anything to go by, he wasn't hiding his wishes very well.

__

"I can't drag our men into a battle like this, Aiden," he said although the defense was weak.

__

"You can," Aiden snapped as his face twisted into a frown.

__

"They could die," he said softly. All his men depended on him to protect them and dragging them into a battle they might not win was not protecting them.

__

"We would have been dead a long time ago if not for you. None of us will mind if you drag us into a fight," Aiden stated. The cold tone caught his attention and Jaune winced before sighing in defeat.

__

"How far is it to Goodneighbor."

__

(Ruby's group)

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Macready knew that something wasn't right with these three; something more than the normal commonwealth insanity. Something about them just set his instincts on edge and he wanted nothing to do with them. Still, he followed the man who'd bought his services and said nothing even as the woman in red led them deeper into the streets surrounding Diamond city. Before they'd left an hour ago, she'd said something about stopping at Goodneighbor to restock for three days. It must not have been talked about beforehand since the man she was traveling with gave her a strange look but backed down after they went away to talk privately.

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Scowling he shifted his rifle as they got closer to the place, he'd met his contractor. He didn't trust the woman, she reminded him too much of the man from Vault 101. Glancing at his companions he noticed the siblings quietly whispering while Strong simply hummed and began tapping a beat on the handle of the sledgehammer he'd picked up a while ago. Glancing at Cait he found her right behind the grey-haired man; who was another person that Macready didn't like. Seeing them slow to a stop he moved closer to the front so he could listen in on their conversation.

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"Better than being caught unaware," Ruby said. She'd pulled down her hood and scarf allowing him to see the way her eyes traced her companion's expression.

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"How long would you be gone," he asked the stoic tone reminding Macready of a soldier waiting for orders. Watching her glance down the street he tightened his grip on his gun at the thought of her being where he couldn't watch her. He didn't want to let her out of his sight, not when they could be leading them into a trap. He'd learned a long time ago never to trust people even if they did seem to have the best intentions. All it had taken for that lesson to sink in was a vault dweller snapping and coming back to murder half of Little Lamp Light.

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"No longer than an hour, just long enough to scout the way between here and Goodneighbor," she said. Watching him think it over she hoped he would say yes. She could move faster on her own, and she knew there was a group of raiders up ahead. It would be easier to deal with them herself than with a group, plus she wanted to give him more time to recover even if he didn't need it. Plus those Raiders could have information on Emerald or the slave auction, while she doubted, he would disagree with her methods of gathering that information, she didn't want him to see her covered in blood.

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"Alright," he agreed slowly. Smiling slightly, Ruby pulled off her bag before handing it to him as yet another promise to return. Realizing she was about to leave, Macready stalked forward gaining both their attention.

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"Not without me," he snapped. The lack of trust was evident in his voice but it did nothing to affect the two in front of him. Feeling Clarke's eyes on his back he ignored the other man in favor of glaring at the girl. His leader was too soft and kind, trusting people would lead to nothing but pain out here. He stiffened as her silver, unnatural, colored eyes roamed over him.

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"He's a good shot love," Kandy cut in. Her words caused Ruby's eyes to zero in on the rifle he was carrying. Of course, he was a good shot, he'd been using a gun since he was six.

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Instead of answering she turned her attention to her partner. Seeing her questioning gaze, Mercury chuckled. He'd never thought she would look to him for advice but here they were. In truth, he didn't trust the other man, but anything was better than Ruby going off on her own and getting hurt. He supposed that the man might be able to keep her safe or at least let her relax a little bit.

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"Two people are better than one," he said. Nodding Ruby motioned for the mercenary to follow her as he pulled up her hood and scarf. Taking off down the street she heard Macready curse as he was forced to run after her.

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Narrowing his eyes, Macready noticed she moved like an assassin, every step was silent even as she skidded to a stop to wait for him. Her silent footsteps were a cold reminder that there were people out there that were just like that man. Tightening his grip on his rifle he scoffed as she sent an amused glance at him. Did she honestly expect him to be tired? Creeping around the corner she walked forward her eyes landing on the blackened blood on the pavement a few feet away. Holding up her hand for him to stop she kneeled and reached out her fingertips grazing the bloody ground. It was dry, without a body it was hard to tell if the owner was dead. Feeling a tap on her shoulder she glanced up before following his finder to the smears of blood barely hidden by a piece of wood.

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Standing she kicked the wood away and smirked. The attempt of hiding it was shoddy and barely worth mentioning meaning it was Raider's work, her prey was close. Following the blood trail, she ignored the irritated gaze on her black. Macready wasn't subtle in his dislike of her and she found herself not really caring about what he thought of her. She had a job to do and his personal feelings didn't matter to her at all.

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Coming to a stop as the sound of laughter reached her ears Ruby narrowed her gaze. Hiding behind a rusted car, she stiffened as Macready brushed her shoulder doing the same. She didn't trust the mercenary at all, and she was going to have to if they got into a fight. Letting her hand fall to her dagger she peeked around the hood.

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The raiders were standing around laughing as a merchant desperately tried to apply pressure to his wound. Feeling her anger rise she stayed calm long enough to count the seven raiders standing around him. All of them were carrying pipe weapons, and she didn't doubt there were more inside. Moving slightly, she unsheathed her dagger silently. Using her gun would draw too much attention and she wanted this to be quiet.

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"Cover me," she ordered before moving.

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Without waiting to see if he would follow the order she took off; her feet barely made a sound as she darted forward to appear behind a Raider. A look of shock flashed in the brown eyes of the red-haired man as her dagger cut through his neck easily. Gurgling he crashed to his knees as his murderer twisted on her heel as if she was a dancer. Stabbing the blade through another's chest, she kicked off the ground using his body as a brace as she flipped into the air. For a moment she hung in the air, then her body came crashing down. Landing behind him she kicked his screaming form into another raider before hearing the order to shoot. Ducking behind a car, she winced as bullets unloaded into the metal; so much for keeping it quiet.

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She'd gotten two of them but there were still five left. Switching the grip, she had on her knife she silently waited until one of them cursed as impatience won against caution. Hearing footsteps come toward her she stilled her eyes sharpening as he started to around the corner of the car. Lashing out she felt her knife tear into his skin before she withdrew her arm. Screaming in pain the raider dropped to the ground as her blade sliced the tendons in his ankle. Grabbing the pistol from his hand she rammed her knife into his skull before kicking him away. That made three.

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Standing she used his gun to shoot his friend in the head. Watching the man fall she turned her attention to the other four only to see three. Glancing around quickly she wondered briefly if she'd miscounted before the thundering sound of a battle cry was heard behind her. Jolting she spun on her heel the grip she had on the gun tightening as she pulled the trigger only for nothing to happen. Feeling her eyes widen she realized he was much too close for her to dodge as he raised the machete to cut through her chest. Stumbling away from the blade threatened to slice through her chest she brought up the hand holding the knife to block.

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Hearing a gunshot her eyes widened as the raider slumped his body falling to the ground as a spot of crimson bloomed on his chest. Glancing toward Macready she ducked to avoid another hail of bullets. Holding a hand to her chest to calm herself down she realized that it had been a good idea to bring the man along. While her knife would have parried the blow, she'd still found herself in a situation she hadn't expected. Looking down at the useless gun in her hand she scowled before flipping it in her hand and sheathing her knife.

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Hearing the gunfire stop she stood again before rushing toward the last three raiders who hadn't expected her to move. Their eyes widened in surprise as one of them started to open fire before yelping as pain ran through his arm. Dropping the gun, he cradled his hand that had been grazed by Macready's bullet as Ruby took advantage of the opening; throwing the useless pistol at him Ruby kicked off the ground. Her legs wrapped the middle one's neck in a motion that would have made Neo extremely proud of her. Shifting her hips, she broke his neck as they landed on the ground. Looking up she winced and rolled away before the makeshift ax the other had pulled off the ground could cut off her head.

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Hearing Macready shoot the raider she couldn't stop the laugh from bubbling out her throat at how close that had been to killing her. Grabbing the ax from the raider's still warm body she lunged toward the one with the injured hand. The man cried out as she pinned him to the ground, the rusted edge of the weapon brushing his neck. Panting she motioned for Macready to check on the merchant as she steadied her breathing.

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"Now, I want to know how many raiders are gathering and you're going to tell me," she said. The cold tone would have made her unrecognizable to her friends but luckily none of them were here to see her. Stiffening Macready glanced back at her his hands shaking slightly as her tone reminded him of someone else.

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"Fuck you bitch," the raider snapped. Raising an eyebrow Ruby silently considered the situation. She was, of course, going to kill him, and in a few days, she would be finding out the truth for herself anyway, yet going into a situation blind wasn't really the best course of action. Standing she watched his eyes widen in shock and hope before stabbing the ax in her hand through his leg. The pained scream that left his lips made her bite her lip to hold back a wince.

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Taking a deep breath, she waited for him to stop crying so that he'd be able to answer her questions. They had to find Emerald, for Mercury's sake, and ignorance would get them killed. She refused to be the same ignorant child who survived by luck alone, but she did wish that she could be that child. How easy would life be if she could still close her eyes to reality and pretend bad things didn't happen. Unsheathing her knife, she steeled herself for what was about to happen.

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"Let's try again," she said softly. Kneeling in front of him she caught his flailing hand when he tried to hit her. She understood that to him she must look like a monster, yet if their situations were reversed, he wouldn't hesitate to do worse than kill her. Eyes growing colder she asked, "How many Raiders are going to be at the gathering?"

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"Fifty from each gang including the boss, there are ten gangs," he blurted out. Nodding slowly, she thought over his words. He wasn't lying, but they were still going to be overwhelmed easily at this rate.

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"Thank you," she whispered as she lashed out; the blade in her hand tearing through his neck easily. Sighing she wiped her bloody blade on his pants and slid it back into its sheathe. Standing she turned to face Macready who was watching her in shock before glancing at the merchant. The merchant's empty eyes stared at the sky letting her know he was already dead: gritting her teeth she twisted on her heel and started walking toward Goodneighbor.

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(Mercury)

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He hated waiting; the action just wasn't something that sat well with him. It was even worse when clear lines were drawn in the alleyway between the two groups. Closing his eyes, he leaned against the brick wall as Cait drew lines in the dirt with her toe. Both were warily listening to the chatting group a few feet away. Cait he knew was wary of the Super Mutant while he was focused more on the siblings; humans were far more dangerous than any species alive and more unpredictable. Everyone who forgot that fact ended up dead.

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"So, this girl we're saving who is she," Clarke asked. He was hoping this didn't lead to something like an alien artifact or an almost immortal family. That had been the worst days of his life since he honestly hadn't known what to do about any of the events that happened. Seeing the amused glance his sister sent in his direction he tried to ignore her.

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"My sister," Mercury said. He didn't even bother to open his eyes since his tone relayed his desire not to talk to them at all.

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"And we're stopping in Goodneighbor why," Kandy asked confusion tinting her voice. If it was her sibling, she wouldn't be wasting time.

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"Allies," he stated trying to put an end to the conversation it worked since his cold tone caused her to fall silent. Mercury straightened his eyes opening as Ruby walked back into the alleyway, her eyes finding him almost instantly. Stalking toward her he frowned, there was blood on her jacket. Looking her over for any injuries he was relieved when he found none. Watching her pull down her scarf and hood he asked, "everything clear?"

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"Yes, we have a clear path to Goodneighbor," she stated.

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He could see that something was wrong; it was like all the effort he'd put into making her feel better had been beaten to death with a crowbar. Her eyes were dull as she turned away from him but he noticed that she was clutching the strap of her rifle tightly. Leading them forward, she ignored the glance Macready sent her as he went to report her action to his boss. She felt cold, five hundred raiders were waiting for them; they were badly outnumbered. Even if the others did show up, they wouldn't be able to do anything. A literal army was between them and Emerald.

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Once again, she wasn't going to be able to save anyone. Drowning in her own thoughts she didn't notice that Mercury was walking beside her until he wrapped his arm around her shoulder. Pulling her close he acted like he didn't see her eyes fill with shock or how her hands were shaking slightly. Clenching her fists Ruby blinked away her emotions and buried the part of her that screamed she was making a mistake. Instead, she sent him a grateful smile as they entered Goodneighbor.

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Taking a step forward she pulled away from him to embrace the mayor, Hancock, as he walked forward to greet them. Grinning the ghoul laughed as he returned her hug. Holding her tightly he noticed the way she clung to his coat for longer than necessary and resolved to ask her about it when they were alone. Releasing her he flickered his calculating gaze to the group she'd brought and smirked when he saw Macready's confused gaze; the mercenary had never met Goodneighbor's little angle had he?

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"Been a while Red," he said the teasing tone following her as she embraced Fahrenheit the taller woman ruffling her hair.

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"Yes, well I've been busy," she said slapping the woman's hand away from her hair. Smiling at one of the men who'd saved her life, she motioned to Mercury saying, "this is Mercury, I knew him before I came to the Commonwealth."

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Eyes widening slightly, Hancock looked over the other male with a critical eye. So, he was from Remnant as well, that was surprising. From what she'd told him Mercury was the name of a man who'd been her enemy but here they were together. He didn't quite know what to think of the other male. It burned him to think she would lie, so this man had been her enemy. Narrowing his eyes, he wondered how Kellogg would react to this piece of news the man was extremely protective of the girl. He would need beer and snacks when Kellogg met her little group. Lots of snacks.

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"Tell me everything later, right now you should get settled into your place," he said motioning to his office. Nodding Ruby gave him one last hug her face nuzzling his chest, before leading them to her warehouse.

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She'd won her house from Hancock in a game of poker something that Kellogg had taught her shortly after she'd arrived her to get her mind off what happened when she'd first arrived in the Commonwealth. Entering the building she ignored the glances thrown in her direction at the neat and tidy first floor covered with a thin layer of dust. This was the place she'd recovered after first arriving in this place with Hancock and Kellogg being the only people, she would allow near her. Ignoring their glances, she frowned and left them to explore. Starting up the stairs to her room she stopped and looked back at them.

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"I'm going to take a shower," she said before vanishing. Hancock wouldn't be able to keep what happened a secret and knowing that it would most likely be better to tell Mercury herself. The only issue was that she didn't want him to look at her differently. Stopping at the door to her room she entered it slowly and pulled off her jacket throwing it on the small bed before she moved toward the attached bathroom.

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Mercury sighed his eyes landing on the couch a few feet away. Walking over he didn't hesitate to crash down onto it. Gods he was tired, but at least his legs had recovered. Walking around without them repaired had been straining on his nerves more than anything else. Now all he could do was try to relax and pretend he hadn't lost his little sister to Raiders.

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Throwing his arm over his eyes he tried to relax. His anxiety over finding Em was almost overwhelming but he did know that recklessly going off on his own wouldn't solve anything. He could hear their hired help whispering together, most likely judging both for their actions. Ruby had changed more than he'd ever thought possible, yet she was still the same girl who saved her enemies. He saw that light in her eyes every time she looked at him, he doubted she would ever be able to kill that part of herself.

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"Can I ask you another question," Clarke asked a new sort of wariness in his voice. Feeling a bit of interest in the tone he decided to listen to what the man said. Opening his eyes slowly Mercury sat up slowly his eyes turning to hardened steel.

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"You just did," he stated the coldness in his tone causing Cait to tense. He was really starting to like her; she was just observant enough to notice his tone changes. Cait frowned she moved body moving to stand behind him as the other man's companions did the same. Noticing the way Macready fingered his pistol she tensed and narrowed her eyes. Laying a hand on the hilt of her knife she met the man's eyes and dared him to make a move against her contract holder. Yawning as if the tension didn't affect him, Mercury said, "what do you want to know?"

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"She tortured a man for information," Clarke started.

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Mercury raised an eyebrow and for a moment he was shocked then he started to chuckle. The amusement in his eyes wasn't lost on the others as they stared at him in surprise. Imagining Ruby torturing anyone was fun, it seemed his little rose had grown up more than he'd thought she had. Knowing that he was no longer afraid that she would get herself killed during their battles. Now he just had to test how good she'd become.

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"Good," he stated shocking their hired help. Leaning back, he sighed in slight contentment, ruthlessness would keep her safe. Seeing the shock on their faces he chuckled asking, "did you think I would be shocked? Honestly Ruby is the kindest person I know but that part of her that your dog saw isn't nearly as horrible as my own darkness."

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"Oh, love, we're not angry just curious," Kandy said trying to settle the tension in the air. Raising an eyebrow at the woman he rolled his eyes.

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"We can't trust them," Macready snapped drawing Mercury's attention. Smirking the man considered his options before disregarding the mercenary as a threat. It wasn't as if the man could actually beat either of them.

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Hearing a knock on the door he groaned and stood up slowly; the thought it could be one of the others was the only thing that got him off the couch. He just hoped it wasn't Jaune, being threatened with drowning wasn't a very nice experience and he really didn't want it to be repeated. Opening the door slowly he caught a glimpse of burning golden eyes that quickly filled with rage. He barely had time to curse before he was kicked back. Stumbling he dodged the punch sent at his face.

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"Stand down," he shouted keeping Cait from attacking as he moved away from the black-haired woman. The snarl on her face was familiar to him and he chuckled allowing the cruel sound to fill the air as he said, "hey Kitty cat you're looking good."

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"Where's Ruby," she hissed. Her hand shaking as she held her knife in his direction. Seeing the ribbon on her head move slightly he knew she wasn't acting. Her rage was definitely real, yet it was just his luck that the woman he suspected of abandoning Ruby was the first to appear.

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"Such animosity," he teased.

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Circling her as she did the same to him, he knew that hurting Blake would be hurting Ruby. Stepping to the side as she lunged at him, he made no move to attack her back, even as she bounced off the wall and aimed a kick at his chest. Dodging the attack, he grabbed her leg before tugging. Watching her fall, he wasn't surprised that she moved into a handstand before using her other foot to kick his hand. Releasing her, he took a step back as she flipped to her feet. Seeing her flip the knife in her hand into a reverse grip, he rolled his eyes.

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Even without fighting back it was easy to see through her every move, but then again Blake had never been much of a challenge for him. Catching her wrist when she swiped the blade at his neck he simply held her wrist. Meeting his gaze with a smirk she released the blade before catching it with her other hand. Raising an eyebrow at her action, he didn't move as she rammed him into the wall and rested the blade at his neck.

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The darkened glare of distrust, hate, and rage in her eyes was so familiar that he almost laughed. How long had it been since someone had looked at him like that; about four years. Seeing the expression again made him realize that he hadn't missed being glared at like this. Feeling the blade press against his neck, he smirked at the silent threat. They both knew that she wouldn't hurt him until he told her where to find Ruby.

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Hearing Cait unholster her gun, he watched with amusement as Blake finally realized they were not the only ones in the room. That reminded him that he should probably start paying Cait since Blake's shocked expression was worth at least five hundred caps.

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"Release him now," Cait ordered her shotgun aimed at the other woman while the others simply stared at the scene in shock.

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"You don't know what he's done," Blake snapped. Four years hadn't dulled her anger at all if anything it had caused it to burn hot; if it hadn't been for his group her family would still be alive. She'd heard Ruby's call for help and rushed over as quickly as she could; but she hated thinking that Mercury had gotten to the girl first. Ruby was too trusting and naïve and someone like Mercury would take advantage of that fact.

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Ruby frowned, her form paused on the stairs as she listened to her teammate's words. There was a part of her that was happy Blake was here, yet the almost unyielding anger at her threat to Mercury guided her movements. Stalking down the stairs she shoved the other woman away her eyes hardened silver as she moved between the two.

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	8. Black Cat

Seeing those golden eyes again made her unbelievably happy; so much so that she almost forgot to breathe. In an instant, it was as if all the wounds she carried on her skin were gone and she was a bright-eyed student at Beacon once again. She could still remember the happy times with her team and seeing Blake she wanted to pretend she was sitting in her dorm watching her teammates laugh about something she'd said. Then the feeling was gone washed away by the self-loathing and guilt she saw in Blake's eyes. Her teammate only looked like that once; the day she saw them again after leaving them behind. The thought dulled her good mood putting her emotions on edge. She hoped it wasn't true, but she wouldn't put it past Blake to leave her behind.

Seeing her expression Mercury frowned; his eyes seeing the same thing Ruby did but unlike her, he wasn't willing to keep quiet. Taking a step forward he took all the attention in the room back to himself. If Blake was hiding something he would find out; not just for himself or Emerald but for Ruby too. He wondered briefly if Emerald would approve of his growing attachment to the redhead before shoving the thought to the back of his mind.

"So, kitty cat how've you been these last few years," he asked amusement dripping from his voice, although it couldn't hide the slight hints of anger in his tone. Then again, he'd always disliked the feline faunus more than the others. Feeling Ruby shift beside him he frowned and gently laid a hand on her shoulder.

Ruby didn't realize she was leaning toward Mercury until his hand landed on her shoulder. The simple action grounding her enough that she was able to look at her teammate without wanting to run away. She might've been happy to see the other girl but there was a part of her that felt wary of Blake's presence and anger. Her own instincts were warning her away from being too accepting of the woman; her instincts had never been wrong before so she wouldn't doubt them now. Relaxing immensely, she didn't notice Blake tense in confusion and annoyance.

"Ruby what the hell," she snapped.

Her rage lighting up her eyes and causing the smaller woman to flinch. The action was noticed by everyone in the room especially Macready who sent a look toward Clark. Giving a subtle nod the man motioned to Strong and his sister to keep an eye on the black-haired woman; it wouldn't be good if this woman killed their employers before they got their money. Taking a deep breath Ruby was all too aware of the people watching them.

She'd known Blake was a judgmental person but seeing that light of anger in her eyes Ruby couldn't stop herself from frowning. That look had never been directed at her and seeing it now she wanted nothing more than to run away, but that wasn't possible. Doing that would mean accepting defeat and she refused to do that. After all this time she wasn't the same little girl who shrank away from harsh tones. Narrowing her eyes, she tilted her head up in defiance.

"Blake, you should calm down," she said softly. The tone was harsh especially when combined with the cautious look in her eyes, but it seemed Blake didn't notice the warning in her tone. The lack of trust was putting everyone in the room on edge and not just Blake. Fingering the handle of her gun Cait frowned she didn't quite know what to do about this situation.

"No! He's a murderer and a monster," Blake almost shouted as she lost control for a moment. Her anger hadn't been dulled in the last four years and seeing the way Ruby let him touch her was infuriating. How could Ruby trust him enough to let him get close? Didn't she remember everything he'd done?

Cait stilled the words about her contract holder, but not in surprise. Those words just confirmed what she'd already known about him and they also caused her to realize she didn't care about his past because it hadn't happened to her personally. While he might not be a good person, he had freed her and Tommy. What he did in the past didn't matter to her, and from the way Ruby looked at him, the girl didn't care either.

Noticing Clark unholster the gun on his hip, Cait narrowed her eyes letting her attention drifting between the three as she considered her options. If looks could kill the black-haired woman would be dead from the murderous glare in Mercury's grey eyes. Cait herself was shaken by the force of his glare since it reminded her that this man had tortured someone only days ago.

"Everyone in this world is a killer," Ruby said in his defense as Mercury tightened his grip on her shoulder. He was all too aware of the looks being thrown at him by their hired help at Blake's words. Even in this world being called a monster was too much for some people to ignore it seemed. Cait herself was glancing between the three of them in confused anxiety.

"We both know he was a murderer long before we came here," Blake scoffed. Her glaring eyes cut into Ruby as if they were daggers. To Ruby it was the exact same expression Blake had worn when looking at Cinder during the war; the hate in her eyes turned Ruby's blood to ice. Wincing Ruby looked away causing Mercury to growl; he didn't know why but the flash of pain that tore through her silver eyes angered him more than anything else the cat had done.

"And you weren't," he snarled the words causing her to tense. Glaring at him in hate and anger Blake hated the way her heart tightened at his words. Tilting his chin up as if he was looking down at her he said, "I wasn't the one born into a terrorist organization."

"You killed Penny and Pyrrha," Blake hissed hiding the pain she felt and hoping that the words would cause Ruby to snap back to sanity. Why did she feel like Ruby was taking his side over her own? Leaving her in Diamond city was supposed to make Ruby safer yet here she was running around with an assassin.

"No, he didn't, Penny was a casualty and Pyrrha's murderer is dead," Ruby said her soft tone turning cold when Mercury's grip tightened to almost harsh levels. She had no doubt that the mention of Cinder had hurt him just like Blake had intended.

"What about your father, are you forgetting the role he had in Qrow's death," Blake asked her voice rising as she flickered her eyes between the two. Ruby tensed her hand reaching up to clutch her scarf before she stopped herself at the last moment. Letting her hand drop she noticed Mercury loosen his grip once he realized what he was doing.

Clark stilled his hand twitching at the words. What the hell had they stumbled into? Why did everything they did end up being way too complicated? Just once he wanted to go somewhere and shoot some people without having to deal with any emotions. Seriously what happened to good old fashion violence without personal stakes. Sending his sister, a glance he noticed her eyes flicker to the redhead bodyguard who was ready to tackle Blake.

"Are you forgetting that I tore Tyrian's head from his body," she asked her head tilting to the side. The wicked innocent tone in her voice shocked those around her but she didn't care.

Macready choked his eyes widening as he shot a glance at Clark whose lips had tilted upward. The words caused Blake to pale as the faunus remembered the day Ruby finally found the scorpion; it had been entirely too bloody and, in the end, the only part of Tyrian that was able to be identified was his head. Ruby could be a monster when she was angry; something that Blake had tried to ignore over the last few years.

Mercury was frowning since he knew just how much the death of her father had hurt Ruby and for it to be used against her was a low blow. One he wished he could return tenfold, but for now, he wouldn't step down to Blake's level. However, if that woman took one more shot at Ruby he would punch her in the face.

Seeing movement behind Blake, Ruby noticed Cait clench her fists and felt a burst of affection for the woman. The cage fighters' eyes were blazing as she glared at the black-haired woman's back; both from the woman's words and from the insult she'd given by turning her back. The redhead was holding her gun tightly as she looked between the woman and her employer.

"What's wrong with you?" Blake snapped. The little bit of patience she had shattering as Ruby spoke so coldly. Her leader was supposed to be happy and bright not like this. Without thinking, she said, "I left you so you wouldn't become a mon-"

Before she could finish the sentence, Mercury moved his mind driven by the desire to stop her before she hurt Ruby any more than she already had, yet he knew that it was over. Ruby had already heard her and knew the truth. Blake had left her behind, again, and that hurt more than anything else that had happened in the last four years. She'd been so foolish in hoping that her team cared enough to try finding her.

Clutching her scarf tightly Ruby did nothing to stop him when he kicked out at Blake's chest. She knew that despite Blake's words, he wouldn't hurt the faunus. Jumping back the faunus flipped away from him landing in a crouch as her eyes went from him to Ruby in panic. She could see the despair darkening the younger woman's eyes even as he put himself between them to block her view. He no longer cared for the audience they currently had; his sole focus was on Blake.

"Tell me, when you abandoned her did you do it for yourself or Ruby," he asked the cold tone followed by Blake's eyes widening in horror as she realized what she'd said. She tried to see her leader but the only thing she could see was the cold rage twisting across Mercury's face. The tense set of his mouth almost made her think he cared for Ruby, but she beat the thought back. Anger was a steadier emotion to focus on, so she didn't hesitate to open her mouth and throw insults at the man.

Ruby tuned them out as they argued, her eyes dropping to the ground as her fears were confirmed. She should have known that the only reason no one tried to find was that she wasn't worth finding at all. Hands shaking, she didn't care that almost every eye in the room was flickering between her and Mercury. She'd been so foolish to think that Blake hadn't known where she was. Of course, the most lethal member of the team had known she was in Diamond City; she just hadn't cared.

Cait didn't realize she was moving until she'd skirted around the now arguing pair to stand beside the shaking woman. Reaching out she touched Ruby's shoulder and was surprised to see the woman flinch from the touch. Silver eyes met Cait's own and she almost winced at the pain radiating from the younger woman. The vulnerability was all she could see; it looked out of place on someone she knew was strong enough to handle anything. Moving to stand beside the girl she then turned her attention back to Mercury who was busy verbally killing Blake.

Ruby felt so stupid. Part of her knew that the only reason Blake would leave her would be to protect her but standing here with the truth so brutally thrown in her face she almost couldn't breathe. Everyone left her eventually; her mother, her father, her aunt, and now Blake. She would always be alone in the end it was stupid to think otherwise. Not even the hand touching her shoulder from Cait could kill the demons in her head.

"That's where your wrong you bitch, unlike you I won't leave her," Mercury snapped as his emotions finally got the better of him.

Anger was almost emanating from the man like a fog as Blake accused him of using the woman only to leave her behind later. She was wrong; so wrong that he wanted to beat her over the head with a pipe until she realized how horrible she was being. He might not be Ruby's teammate of over six years, but he knew the woman well enough to realize she never wanted to be alone. In a way she was just like him and Emerald; to have Blake so blatantly accuse him of planning to leave Ruby behind was insulting on so many levels.

While this might've started as a deal to get Emerald back, he'd seen the simple happiness Ruby had gained from being around him. If just seeing him had made her happy then he knew learning that Blake had voluntarily let her fend for herself must be killing the woman. He knew that Emerald would agree with his decision to let the woman join their group; at this point, he was sure that Cinder would have taken Ruby in. When they got her back, he doubted his sister would let Blake's abandonment of Ruby stand for even a second before she punched the cat in the face.

Ruby jolted as his voice cut through the fog around her mind. Eyes snapping to him she took in the sight of him staring down her teammate, no former teammate, with cold protectiveness in his eyes as he dared her to disagree with his words. She was surprised that he'd even said the words aloud before straightening. He needed her right now, that was most likely the only reason he was saying that yet hearing the words filled her with warmth. Watching as Blake's face once again filled with anger, she moved forward her hand gently touching his arm and stopping the assassin before he could murder her former teammate.

"Mercury it's fine," she whispered drawing his attention back to her. Stilling the man glanced down at her before taking a step back; he would trust her to handle the faunus.

"Ru-"

"Our mission is to find Emerald, will you help us with that," she asked ignoring the dull pain in her heart. She could feel all the eyes on her, but she didn't let herself show any weakness. The pain had been a part of her life for the last four years and nothing she did would ever change that. Finding out that Blake had found her and simply walked away was horrible, but she wouldn't allow herself to falter.

"Even after all she's done," Blake asked glancing toward the door. Her partner was due to show any time and she knew he would follow whatever decision she made.

He would however not let her live anything down. After working for the Railroad for this long she knew without a doubt that he would tease her harshly for this. Letting her emotions rule her choices wasn't something she usually did but seeing Ruby so close to Mercury was setting her blood on fire. Even after all these years, she'd never forgiven him for any of the death Salem had caused. Adam and Sun had died because of the war along with her parents.

"We were at war, all of us made choices that hurt each other," Ruby said softly as her eyes flickered to Mercury once again. Instead of speaking he placed his hand over the one she'd put on his arm. It was only a second, but the action calmed her enough that she was able to look into Blake's eyes without falling apart. Then his hand dropped, and she felt hollow once again.

Looking between them, Blake wished she could understand why Ruby accepted someone like him, yet Ruby had always been the most kindhearted out of all of them, she wouldn't put it past Ruby to forgive all his actions. She couldn't do that; out of her teammates, she'd always been the one who held grudges. Seeing Ruby take comfort in someone like him made her feel horrible. She'd made so many mistakes when she arrived in this world. It seemed that leaving Ruby had been one of those.

"I'll help you," she said her eyes glancing between the two with cautious eyes. Talking to Ruby with Mercury around wasn't going to end well for her and she'd rather wait to talk to the woman alone than try to deal with Mercury. She would play along just until she got a chance to have a conversation with her teammate.

"Good," Ruby stated before turning to head back upstairs before a sudden thought popped into her head. Glancing at her former teammate she asked, "when did you decide I was better off alone?"

For a moment Blake was silent her eyes dropping to the floor as she remembered the smile on Ruby's face as she followed a tall man around Diamond City. Taking a deep breath, she looked up trying to use that moment to justify her reasoning as she said, "three and a half years ago."

The admission caused Ruby's expression to change. Her soft eyes darkening to hard steel as she stared at the woman as she felt cold rage overtake her emotions for a second. Turning on her heel Ruby stalked up the stairs leaving her former teammate with the feeling she'd said something horribly wrong. Without hesitation, Mercury followed the younger woman up the stairs without looking back at Blake. He wasn't surprised to notice Cait fall into step beside him. He didn't really care that their hired help was in a huddle talking in hushed voices.

His first look at Ruby's room was that she had taken the best one. Her room was separated into three rooms: a workshop which given the number of weapons laying around the room that was covered in a light layer of dust, she hadn't worked on in a while, a bathroom with running water and her bedroom. Watching her fall onto the dark blue couch he raised an eyebrow as she covered her eyes to block out the light. She hadn't been here since Kellogg went missing. Something she was hoping would prove false in the long run.

She looked utterly defeated and he found himself not liking it at all. Leaning against the wall he watched her for a moment before sighing. The thing he'd always respected about her was her determination. She'd never been willing to back down from a fight, even against people who should be far stronger than she was. So, seeing the woman who knocked on hell's door look ready to quit was unsettling.

"Are you okay," he asked feeling his face heat up slightly when Cait sent him a look of disbelief. Shrugging he glanced away as the woman rolled her eyes at him; although he did feel happy that the cage fighter was starting to trust him enough to show emotions.

For just a moment he felt as if he was standing in a room with his team once again. He had no idea which of them was Cinder in this situation. His oldest sister would have annoyed by this entire situation however and most likely set the entire world on fire. Her pyromantic tendencies had been something he respected and feared. Even in a world without her semblance, she most likely would have found a way to start fires.

"Not really," Ruby admitted. Pushing herself up she glanced over at him with an expression he couldn't decipher. Tilting her head, she studied him for a long moment; her mind rewinding the words he'd spoken earlier as she tried to figure out if they were true or not. She didn't want to get her hopes up only for him to leave her alone. It was bad enough that Blake had decided she was better off alone.

"I meant what I said, I won't leave you alone again," He said. It was the only possible answer to her looking at him as if she was breaking into pieces. She was waiting for him to tell her it was a joke and that he didn't mean a word of it, yet he did the opposite and she didn't know how to react.

"Neither will I," Cait said. Her words caused them both to send her a sharp glance; the woman really didn't know what she was promising. It did however cause Ruby's lips to tilt upward into a smile.

"Thank you," she said softly her eyes cutting to Mercury who was tilting his head slightly. Seeing something sharp in her eyes he turned his attention to Cait. Following his gaze, Ruby sighed before saying, "Cait why don't you go visit Tommy and let Hancock know I'll be visiting his office later tonight."

"Sure, try not to kill anyone while I'm gone," the woman said. She knew when she was being dismissed and she wasn't even angry about it. Stalking from the room she was didn't notice the smile fall from Ruby's face.

Mercury stared at her waiting for her to speak since he knew there was something, she wanted to tell him. Looking at her he studied the hardened glow in her eyes for a long moment. She looked less like Ruby and more like the woman who stormed Salem's castle. At that moment she'd looked incredibly attractive despite how much he was supposed to hate her; right now, he was finding it hard not to notice how beautiful she looked.

"There are going to be hundreds of Raiders," she said. The words fell from her lips with only a slight hesitation and he suddenly wanted to run away from everything. Well, that killed any thought of flirting with her. When he raised an eyebrow in question of how she got the information she said, "I got the info from that Raider I tortured on the way here."

The knowledge that there would be hundreds of Raiders waiting on them wasn't something that he'd wanted to hear. They would be vastly outnumbered no matter how many they gathered. He was going to lose Emerald; the only person he had in the world. There was no way that they would be able to get to her. In Remnant, they might have been able too, with her semblance they could have cut down the raiders in less than a moment but now, they were both unable to even draw up their aura in an active way. He was going to lose another sister and there was nothing he could do about it.

Ruby could see him breaking down from where she was sitting. Her hands twitched as she fought back the urge to reassure him, but she couldn't stop herself from standing. Feeling his eyes on her back she frowned for a moment before pulling off her jacket and scarf. Throwing them both onto the couch she painstakingly removed every weapon from her body except her knife.

"I need you to handle telling our hired help," she said. Unbraiding her hair, she pulled it into a simple ponytail before glancing down at herself and nodding. Turning to him she forced a smile to her face hoping to reassure him as she said, "I'm going to meet with a few friends."

He nodded reluctantly although he couldn't see how seeing a few people would help them at all. There was no way that talking to an old friend would lead to anything productive. Walking out the door she didn't even glance at the others as she stalked down the stairs. Her eyes finding Blake for a moment before she forced herself to look away.

(Weiss)

She absolutely hated ghouls; the feral kind. Tugging her blade free of the creature's skull she scowled in disgust at the blood covering her weapon. Slinging the blood off her weapon she took a step back toward her companions. Shifting the long rapier in her hand she raised it threateningly in the direction of the incoming ghouls. From the loud shifting of Danse's power armor behind her he was getting worried at the number of enemies around them.

"Command-"

"Shut up," she snapped before lunging forward.

Tearing through the ghouls in front of her she didn't care that blood splattered onto the ground behind her as if to mark her trail. None of the blood touched the snow-white coat she wore as she spun in a circle. The blood on her blade splattered to the ground as she flipped the weapon in her hand and stabbed behind her cutting off the ghoul about to bit her shoulder. Stepping forward she pulled the blade free and used it to decapitate the ghoul on her left while kicking away the one on her right.

Smelling gunpowder, she had only a moment before the sound gunfire rang out around her. Staying completely still, she watched as the ghouls fell to the ground around her. Looking up she met the cold dark eyes watching her in amusement. Hearing a groan beside her foot she didn't even look down before driving the tip of her blade into the ghoul's head. Clicking his tongue in amusement he stalked toward her only to stop a few feet away when she leveled the blade in his direction.

"White hair, blue eyes, and undeniable talent with a blade. You must be Red's Ice Queen," he said. Raising an eyebrow at him she flicked the blood off her blade and sheathed it.

"By Red, I assume you mean Ruby," she asked despite the glance thrown at her by Danse. When the man nodded, she stepped forward and offered him her hand. Tilting her head back in the picture of aristocratic grace she said, "I'm Weiss Schnee; you may call me Weiss."

"Conrad Kellogg," he told her as Danse groaned. Ignoring her second in command, because this man knew her leader, Weiss stepped away from him.

"How do you know Ruby," she asked softly although it did nothing to disguise her almost desperate tone.

"I'll let her tell you the story when we get to Goodneighbor," he said before motioning to the incoming pack of ghouls. Groaning in exasperation Weiss unsheathed her rapier and moved to attack.


	9. Little Bit of Truth

Ruby had never been good at talking even when she wasn't as cynical as she was now; not to mention that she considered herself one of the most broken people in this world. She wasn't a fool; she knew what being broken felt like and she was broken in a way that couldn't be fixed. The pieces of who she was now would never fit into the person she used to be, as such it was easy to realize that trying to be that person would lead to nothing good. If she could only be the person this world had created, then that was fine. Even if seeing Blake reminded her that she was different it didn't matter in the grand scheme of things.

Walking into the statehouse, she sent a soft smile in the direction of the guards who waved at her in return. Taking the stairs to the second level she felt relief when she noticed that Hancock was alone except for Fahrenheit. The ghoul was doing the most boring part of being a mayor; paperwork. The inventory list was basically a large file filled with all the things that he had stolen and gathered from the rest of the world. It was mainly chems and caps that he'd taken or scavenged over the years. There were also reports for the armory too. Between the two storehouses, she was pretty sure they had enough supplies to support an army.

There must have been an issue with the reports since the only reason any made it up here was when someone was snooping around. He was probably using the situation as a test for someone; he did, after all, love testing people. Stepping into the room quietly, she closed the door behind her. It wouldn't be good for the guards to see her have a breakdown.

"Let me guess your meeting with Desdemona's kitten didn't go very well," he said before tossing the file down and standing. Of course, he knew about Blake, nothing happened in this town without him knowing about it. Hearing him walk to stand behind her she didn't notice her hands were shaking until he reached out to touch her shoulder. Turning slowly, she didn't resist when he pulled her into a hug. Gripping his coat tightly, Ruby returned the hug.

There was so much that she wanted to tell him about, but she had no idea where to start. There was so much that he didn't know about what happened in the last few days and she just wanted to tell him everything. So, she did. Sitting in his office on that ratty old couch she told him everything that happened in the last few days. From Mercury to Blake; she told him everything until there was nothing else for her to say. Without hesitation she also told him about the Super Mutant she'd saved; he'd laughed at her for that.

To her shock he wasn't surprised or offended that she'd chosen to save someone he saw as an enemy; he was just amused. Then again, Kellogg was the one who usually overreacts and panics at her antics. Fahrenheit snorted as she sat down on Ruby's other side. Throwing an arm around the smaller woman's shoulders the orange-haired woman pulled her in for a one-sided hug.

"So, Blake left on purpose," she asked as Hancock resisted the urge to reach for the jet on the table. When Ruby just nodded and leaned closer to the older woman, he knew it was going to be one of those talks.

"Well, when Kell finds out she's dead," he said. The nickname for their favorite mercenary/assassin was one he only used when the man wasn't around to strangle him.

"We're not telling him," Ruby protested. Even after all this time she still wanted to protect her teammate and sending Kellogg after the woman did not count as protecting her. It did, however, count as a death sentence; one that she was thinking about giving to the Raiders. Well, it didn't really matter, not even Kellogg could kill an army of Raiders on his own.

"We are telling him," Fahrenheit stated in a tone that screamed at her not to argue.

"You actually think he'll come," Ruby asked softly.

"Yes."

"You didn't even hesitate for a second," she said glancing at Hancock. The man smirked as if he knew something that she didn't. Given that the man knew almost everything that happened from here to the capital wasteland, she wouldn't be surprised. Tilting his head back the ghoul raised an eyebrow as if daring her to question him; wisely she decided not to.

"Kell's complicated but he loves you," Fahrenheit stated once she saw Hancock wouldn't elaborate. Ruby almost didn't hear her as the woman looked to the side and mumbled, "Well as much as a mercenary can love anyone."

That wasn't exactly how she would describe Kellogg. The man was many things: a murderer, a thief, a soldier, but somehow mercenary didn't fit the person he was. Kellogg was a monster, she didn't doubt that, yet in this world everyone who wanted to survive turned into a monster. However, being a mercenary meant doing anything and everything for money; Kellogg despite his glaring character flaws did have limits to what he would and wouldn't do. Don't get it wrong; there wasn't much he wouldn't do but she believed that he wouldn't hurt her and the people that were precious to her. Even monsters had people they loved.

"So, who's got you two on edge," she asked changing the subject away from Kellogg. Although they both knew she was trying to change the subject; they indulged her.

"Bobby is trying to break into my stash," Hancock admitted although his expression was less than impressed.

"The normal stash or the stash," Ruby asked tilting her head in curiosity. Beside her, Fahrenheit chuckled. It was lovely how they could distinguish between the bait stash he left out in the open to identify traitors and their real stash of equipment.

"The second one," he said matching the amused expression that appeared on her face with his own.

Bobby no Nose was in short, a fool. Not only had the woman been recruiting in the territory of the man she wanted to rob but she wasn't even being subtle about wanting to steal from him; it was as if she didn't care about being discovered. It was foolish and arrogant in a way that left him feeling more amused than insulted. People always underestimated him; it was always interesting to see how they reacted to learning how ruthless he could be.

"Want me to take care of it? I'm really stressed right now," Ruby offered. She'd happily kill the woman if he didn't want too.

"Killing Bobby probably won't help," Hancock said although he didn't refuse her offer. Taking it as approval to do what she wanted the woman offered him a cynical smile. They both knew this wouldn't be the first time she'd kill for him.

"No, but it'll take my mind off of what I'm going to do in a few days," she said causing Fahrenheit to frown.

"You can't be serious! Ruby, you could die!"

The fact she was shaking Ruby as she hissed the words as if she was an enraged cat. Blankly the smaller woman stared up at the mercenary while Hancock coughed to hide his chuckle. It wasn't often but Fahrenheit had the habit of turning into a mama bear when she panicked. Slightly dazed, Ruby didn't notice the look shared by the two over her head.

"Let it go, Fahr," Hancock said ignoring the way she glared at the nickname. Smirking he laid a hand on Ruby's head saying, "Red's not a child to be protected."

Ruby nodded in agreement causing Fahrenheit to let her go and slump in defeat. Smiling softly at the woman Ruby tried to pretend she wasn't afraid of what was going to happen when they managed to catch up to the Raiders. Seeing the questioning glow in Fahrenheit's eyes that begged her to reconsider her choice, Ruby straightened.

"I need to save Emerald," she said as an answer to Fahrenheit's unspoken question.

"Why do you care about her anyway; from what you told us, she's your enemy," the woman snapped as she clenched her fists. She didn't understand why Ruby felt she had to do this.

Staring down at her hands the former reaper had no idea how to answer the question in a way that didn't make her seem like a child. She wanted to save Emerald because of Mercury. There was no other reason but somehow saying that made her feel as if she was a child holding onto an unbelievable dream. Standing she began to pace as she tried to think of a way to describe just how she was feeling. Part of her was afraid that the moment she saved Emerald because she would save her consequences be damned, that Mercury would leave her. However, that didn't change the fact that Emerald was from Remnant; just that fact was enough of a reason to save the woman. Stilling, she tugged at a loose strand of hair as she finally admitted the truth.

"Because Mercury promised not to leave me," she said knowing that it made her sound like a child. Seeing the expression of disbelief on the older woman's face made her defensive, mainly because she knew that Fahrenheit was going to start an argument. Cutting her off before she could start shouting Ruby admitted, "I've tried Fahr, gods know I've tried, but I can't do this anymore. I can't wake up day after day knowing that I have no one. You, Hancock and Kell, are amazing and I love you but I'm lonely. I need to do this. I-I need to save Emerald so that Mercury won't leave me all alone again."

Clenching her jaw Fahrenheit stared up at the girl who'd became her little sister over the last few years and tried not to think about how broken she was. It was true that Ruby had been far from sane when she'd arrived in Goodneighbor with Kellogg four years ago, but she'd thought the girl was getting better or at least less prone to falling apart even few hours. To say that it'd taken a while to put her back together was an understatement, yet they'd done it, and now Mercury Black had come rolling through without a care in the world. All the work they'd done to make her independent was torn to shreds by the man bringing her abandonment issues back to life. And they were abandonment issues there was no other way to classify them besides her own fear of being left alone.

Before Kellogg dragged this little girl into his town Hancock hadn't even known the man's name much less how much he would grow to care about them both. If Ruby wanted to save her old enemy then could he really tell her the idea was foolish? While he didn't approve of her putting so much faith in a single person, this was the first time she'd actually voiced a desire for something that she wanted. There was also the fact that it might be fun to start a fight; he hadn't been out of Goodneighbor for a while, it would be good to stretch his legs for a bit.

"Alright," he said finally. He might be a laid-back man but even he couldn't deny the rising bloodlust swimming in his blood. Shrugging his shoulders he said, "If little Red wants war then who are we to argue."

"Seriously," Fahrenheit mumbled. Her eyes drifted between the two noticing the relief on Ruby's face. She really should have known that the second the younger woman voiced her desire, Hancock would bend over backward to make it happen.

"Fahrenheit you will stay and lead Goodneighbor; Red I'll be joining you and your team," he said as if she hadn't spoken. Leaning back in his seat he smirked when Ruby grinned at him.

"Thank you," she said her eyes lighting up for a moment. The grin never left her lips as she moved toward the door saying, "I'll go take care of your Bobby problem!"

Watching her go Fahrenheit narrowed her gaze as she turned to face him with an exasperated expression. Of course, he saw nothing wrong with going to war after all the man now had an eager light in his eyes. It had been a while since she'd seen him so eager to start a fight. More than that he seemed anxious to spend time with both Ruby and Kellogg not that she blamed him, it had been a while since the three had been around each other.

"Are you really that desperate for a family outing," she asked annoyance in her tone. It wasn't that she disapproved of the three spending time with one another, but she hated the fact she was going to be left behind again.

"What's that supposed to mean," He asked not seeing the way her expression darkened for a moment.

"We both know Kell will be here before four days are up," she said slowly as if he was a child. The bright grin he shot in her direct told her he was ignoring the condescending tone.

"Someone has to keep them out of trouble," he said. There was no doubt that if left alone the two would likely burn down half the commonwealth by accident. Raising an eyebrow, he asked, "Why are you feeling left out?"

The sullen glare she sent in his direction was enough to make laughter spill from his lips.

(Blake)

Mercury was ignoring her again, but she couldn't keep herself from watching his every move even when Deacon subtly ran a hand down her back to calm her down. When he finally fell silent after telling them about the literal army, they would have to face in order to save Emerald. It was hard to keep herself from snapping at him for bringing Ruby into this mess. He should never have walked back into Ruby's life as if he belonged there; the girl had been fine when she was safe in Diamond City.

"I don't blame any of you if you want to back out," he said pretending not to notice the faunus' darkening mood. He truly didn't care what Blake thought or felt as long as she kept her opinions far from Ruby.

"You're not backing down are you," Clarke asked his eyes narrowing in thought. This wouldn't be the first time he led a small team against an army although last time it was Mirelurks instead of Raiders. The strange part was that he wouldn't be the one in the lead if he decided to go through with this job. Sharing a look with his sister he noticed her watching Mercury closely.

"Never," the man stated as if the idea hadn't even occurred to him since in truth it hadn't.

"Even if it costs Ruby her life," Blake asked her tone bordering on ice. There was just enough hate in her voice to keep the chilly tone from lowering the temperature in the room.

Mercury rolled his eyes as he decided that he did not like Blake. Not that he ever thought he could come to like the woman, but he had been hoping to not have the urge to kill her every few moments. Running a hand through his hair he resisted the urge to shoot her if only because it would upset Ruby. Well that and the fact he needed her to help him save Emerald.

"Ruby is old enough to make her own choices," he said instead of just shooting her and telling Ruby she ran away. He doubted that Ruby would call him out on his lie; not when Blake had already admitted to abandoning her.

"She's s-"

"She's not a kid or have you forgotten just how strong your leader is," he asked cutting her off before she could insult Ruby by calling her a kid. Ruby was a very, in his opinion, an attractive woman now and to call her a child was insulting.

"Leader," Kandy asked causing Blake to choke on the curse she was about to throw in his direction.

Stilling both survivors remembered that they had an audience although only Blake was actually worried about what they would think. Mercury raised an eyebrow at the warning look the cat sent in his direction; she most likely didn't want him to give away anything about their old world. Too bad for her that he didn't care what she wanted. Smirking in a way that caused her blood to boil he turned to face their hired help.

"Ruby was the leader of her team during the war that took place before we came to the commonwealth," he said ignoring the way Blake bristled.

The expressions of surprise on their faces were something he could have lived off of for the next year. Watching them exchange looks, he noticed that Clark's eyes blanked while his sister seemed to grow even more excited. She seemed like someone he could have had fun with four years ago. As if sensing his thoughts, Blake scowled before leaning further back toward her partner. Deacon showed no reaction instead he raised his hand to press against the middle of her back. The gentle touch caused her to relax even as she struggled against the urge to rip out the grey-haired man's eyes.

"War," Macready asked. From the conversations he'd overheard, Mercury and Ruby had been on the opposite sides of a war. He knew plenty about war, despite all the times he'd pretended to be nothing more than a mercenary, but more than anything he knew that war left scars. Biting his tongue, he kept his thoughts to himself choosing instead to glance at his boss.

"Woman strong," the super mutant mumbled. Hearing the mutant, Mercury smirked a proud feeling taking over his chest for a moment. Even when they were enemies, he always knew that Ruby was powerful.

"Ruby's insanely strong, but she was also dependent on her team," he said sending Blake a cold glare causing the woman to flinch. Gritting his teeth he almost snarled, "too bad one of her teammates decided to abandon her."

"It was for the best," Blake snapped.

Despite the rage coloring his expression and the literal hate in his eyes, Mercury made no move to argue with her. He could, would, have argued with her but he knew nothing was going to change the way Blake thought. She believed that leaving Ruby alone was the only option and know that she knew it drove the woman into his arms, she was cracking down on the thought process. It was pathetic; even when he was on Salem's side he never pretended to be someone that he wasn't.

"I'm not going to do this with you," he stated ending the conversation despite the way she bristled. Looking back at their hired help that might not choose to fight for them, he said, "you have until we leave Goodneighbor to decide what you want to do."

Stalking from the room he ignored the eyes burning into his back, there was no point in continuing the conversation. He wanted, needed, time to think. There was no backing down from the fight ahead; mostly he needed to find a way to get them more guns and ammo.

(Adam)

It was easy to say that he was a monster; to know that if he'd never been born that hundreds would still be alive right now. The indescribable pleasure that knowledge gave him was amazing. All men in this world were killers even if they tried to do the right thing; he knew because he'd tried to do the right thing. Sometimes doing the right thing and surviving was just wasn't possible. It was easy to call someone a monster; to blame them for everything that went wrong, but it was much harder to understand what made that person a monster.

The day he chose to leave vault 101 and follow his father out into the wasteland was the moment a timer started ticking down on his morality. Every day he woke up, left Megaton, and killed someone. Eventually, he stopped caring that he was taking lives, but he still tried to be a good person. He tried, God knows that he tried so hard, but in the end, it didn't amount to anything. He watched his father die and worse he survived. It wasn't the radiation that drove him to become a monster; it was knowing that he was alone.

What does it mean to be alone? So wrapped up in his own head that he could do nothing but stare into the darkness around him and realize that nothing his father had done mattered. People were dying every single day; there was no cure for humanity except death. So, he chose to become the angel of death rather than the savior of life. The only way for him to survive in this hell was to walk in willingly and hope that he came out on the other side.

There was more blood on his hands then even acid could erase, but he didn't care. He accepted that he was a monster; he thrived in it, and after a while that knowledge made him want it more. The desire to watch blood cover the ground was almost overwhelming. So, he conquered the capital wasteland, built a world where he was King. He built a world where no one could challenge him, and he could do whatever he wanted to do. There was no such thing as restraint, just pain, blood, and anger.

His army would soon invade the commonwealth, but he'd decided to go on ahead with his team. He wanted to watch this world crumble to its knees and fall under his control; anything that refused to submit would be burned down until there was nothing left but ash and bone. That was his choice; he was a monster because he chose to be a monster and that made him far more dangerous than anyone else in this world.


	10. Red's Ice Queen

Instead of staying at Ruby's house, Blake bought a room in the inn, it would have been too hard to keep her sanity if she lived around Mercury. Sitting on the dull mattress, she idly tangled her ribbon around her fingers as Deacon checked over their weapons. She'd been shocked that Ruby was working with Mercury, but not shocked enough to forget their plan. It might be cruel to she hadn't come to Goodneighbor to help her old leader; she was still enraged that Mercury was contaminating the air around the younger woman, but she had better things to do than help Ruby.

Desdemona had heard reports of survivors from Vault 111 causing ripples both good and bad, so she'd sent her two best agents to investigate. Of course, Ruby's message had given them a way into the group. Their original plan had been to simply observe the survivors, but this tilted the scales in their favor, giving them a chance to win their war against the institute. Even if that chance came at the cost of Ruby's trust, she wouldn't regret her choice.

"Did you tell Des where we are," she asked as he moved his weapon to the side. The almost insulted look he sent in her direction at the question caused her lips to twitch upward.

"Of course," he said. Glancing up at her ears for a moment he felt the urge to pet them but shoved it down. Instead, he tilted his head asking, "have you decided what you want to do about your old teammate."

"Besides drive Mercury crazy," she asked causing the infiltration specialist to chuckle and nod. She didn't really have much of a plan; if it was up to her then she wouldn't have even seen Ruby again. it wasn't that she hated her former leader, she loved Ruby, but not enough to get dragged back into the life she'd finally left behind. It was bad enough she'd been unable to find Yang but now Ruby was dragging her into a war with Raiders all over a thief. Shrugging she said, "Nothing. If Ruby wants to trust Mercury, then I won't stop her; that doesn't mean however that I'll stop trying to drive them apart."

Taking the words to mean she was testing the two, he chuckled before standing. Watching his hand reach out, Blake stilled as he combed back her hair with his fingers. Leaning toward him she relaxed allowing her thoughts of the past to vanish.

(Ruby)

Two days after arriving in Goodneighbor Ruby couldn't bring herself to sit still; the anxiety had gotten so bad that Mercury had found her on the roof of the warehouse training. Her feet moved in a deadly dance as she spun the metal staff around her body with elegant grace; the staff was a poor replacement for her scythe, but it was the only thing she had. Narrowing his gaze as she danced, he picked up the matching staff before bringing it up to block her downward swipe. Ruby froze as the sound echoed around them. On one hand, she couldn't believe that he'd actually followed her up here but on the other, she felt grateful that she had someone willing to spar with her.

Surprised silver eyes met his own only for an instant before they were both moving. The metal staff was a blur as she lashed out aiming for his ribs in a brutal swing that was all too easy for him to block. Following her momentum, she kicked out at his chest only for him to laugh and sidestep. The joy-filled sound caused warmth to spread through her body as she finally let a small smile spread over her lips. It was the first time she'd heard such a sound from him.

For the first time since Blake had shown up, Ruby felt warm. It was a well-known fact that huntsmen and Huntresses were warriors; it didn't matter that their world was gone. Peace wasn't something that they could ever accept and even if they did it would never last. Ruby had been raised to fight just like Mercury had been taught to kill. While they might not have the same reason for their skills, they were still similar enough to understand that a simple happy life wasn't what they wanted. If Cinder was alive, Mercury would have fulfilled his role as her soldier; Ruby might've even joined him. As such now they were left to carve out their own way in their world; she'd been thinking about it these last few days, but what she wanted from life wasn't peace or happiness. She wanted to change the world.

It was easy to say that this world they'd been dropped in was unfixable, even now she doubted they would actually be able to save anyone, but that didn't mean they couldn't try. If it meant ensuring that Raiders never took anyone from them again, she was sure that Mercury would agree with her. What little ambition she'd managed to hold onto from her time as a huntress ran hot through her blood at the thought. Ozpin had ruled hunter society for over a hundred years surely pulling together the scattered sanity of the wasteland would be just as possible.

Ducking under a swing she danced out of the way, following him with her eyes as she asked, "Hey Mercury, what are you going to do after we find Emerald."

"I haven't had any plans for the last four years," he admitted as he straightened. Tilting his head at her he raised an eyebrow. He knew that she wouldn't ask something like that if she didn't have an idea of what she wanted to do in the future. Watching her eyes flicker nervously to the edge of the roof, he smirked and walked forward slowly giving her ample time to stop him. Reaching out he took the staff from her hands gently as he said, "Why don't we go downstairs, and you can tell me about this idea that you have."

"Are Clark and his group still around," she asked her soft tone barely reaching his ears. Shaking his head, he opened the door to the roof and motioned for her to go first. Moving past him quickly she walked down the stairs quickly hoping that they could talk about her idea before Clark and his group returned. It wasn't that she didn't like the man, but he wasn't on their side.

Finding Cait in the kitchen she raised an eyebrow at the number of guns and knives collected on the table. Wait was that a rocket launcher, where had Cait gotten a rocket launcher? Walking past the woman, who was currently sharpening a machete, Ruby opened the cooler grabbing a bottle of water and tossing it to Mercury before taking one for herself. Water was another scarcity of the wasteland; if she chose to go through with her idea, she would have to ensure a clean supply of water. That meant whatever base she chose would need to be around water.

Playing with the cap on the bottle, Ruby watched as Mercury downed his without hesitation. She wished she could claim that she was watching him due to the shock of having him trust her enough to drink something she'd given him, yet all she could do was stare at the drop of water that slid down his neck. Feeling an elbow impact her stomach, Ruby squeaked almost dropping the bottle while Cait drew back her arm as she snickered. Sending the woman, a glare as Mercury threw her a confused look, she tried to keep her face from heating up; from the amused expression that colored his face she hadn't succeeded.

"Anyway, I had the idea to take over the Commonwealth," she admitted quickly hoping that they would both forget her small moment. Saying the words out loud made her regret speaking, what if they hated the idea? What if they decided not to help her or simply called her an idiot? Almost shrinking in on herself she didn't notice Mercury watching her until he smirked and chuckled.

"And here I thought Weiss would be the one plotting to control the world," he said causing Cait to raise an eyebrow and Ruby to twitch at the mention of her second in command. Just what would Weiss think about her newest scheme?

"Just why would you want to," Cait asked turning to face the smaller woman. Instead of faltering under the woman's gaze, Ruby straightened her eyes narrowing as she placed the bottle on the counter.

"I don't want to control the entire thing, that would be stupid, I just want to make a place for us and the others to live without being afraid of Raiders or vanishing," she explained crossing her arms.

Mercury frowned as he thought over the idea. In truth, it sounded a bit like something Cinder would suggest, but he had no doubt that she wouldn't have waited this long. If they created this place, then they would not only have a base but also a haven for the others. It would be hard, but he was willing to give this a chance however Emerald would be the deciding factor although he did pity any Raider who tried to attack them.

"There's this island off the coast, near the base recently recovered by the Minutemen, we could use it as a base," Cait stated catching their attention.

"An Island," Ruby repeated as her defensive posture began to fade.

"It's not a bad idea," Mercury said. Tossing his empty water bottle in the sink, he grinned. If they took over an island, then he might not have to deal with Raiders. Seeing Ruby's eyes widen at the approval of Cait's words he explained, "easily defensible, reliable source of water, and we could make an alliance with the Minutemen."

"Wait! You're okay with my idea? You don't think it's horrible," she asked catching him by surprise. The anxiety and slight caution in her eyes told him she was waiting for him to say it was a joke, somehow the thought of her being so jaded that she didn't believe him was both annoying and insulting.

"Ruby if your idea means I can go one month without having to murder my way out of a situation I'll fucking marry you," he stated noticing the way her face reddened at his words. Amusement caused his lips to twitch upward even as he realized it wasn't a lie. He would actually marry her if he could go even a single month without having to kill someone; he might have to kill Blake to make it happen but that didn't matter to him, there were dozens of ways he could get rid of the body without Ruby finding out.

Arms dropping to her side, Ruby stared at him in complete shock as her mind short-circuited at his words. So, all it would take was a month of peace and he'd sell himself to her; was he even serious? Part of her hoped that he was, after all finding a good husband was hard in their own world, finding a husband in a post-apocalyptic world was even harder. Shaking her head, she decided that she would just ignore him for now.

"What if I want her," Cait asked just as Ruby recovered from Mercury's comment. She might not be Ruby's type, but the other woman was attractive and honorable; two things that were hard to find in the Commonwealth. Freezing like a deer in headlights Ruby looked between the two in a slight panic.

Mercury tensed his possessive nature coming to the forefront of his mind as Cait threatened the claim he'd made on Ruby. Narrowing his gaze at the woman he almost snarled but kept it back; he'd been raised to protect what he saw as his and despite her words, Cait was his too; attacking her wouldn't solve anything. Unlike most people who would shrink under his glare, Cait smirked daring him to do anything against her. Allowing his initial anger to fade he returned her smirk; he was starting to like this woman.

"We'll talk later," he stated much to Ruby's rising horror.

Why did she feel like an unholy alliance had just been made? Shifting nervously, she almost cried in relief when someone knocked on the door; there was no way she was going to stay here when they were both discussing her love life. If that was even what they were doing; she resolutely ignored the warm feeling that she had deep in her stomach. Romance wasn't something she had any experience with due to the war but even she was able to understand what they were talking about.

"I'll just go answer the door," she said quickly with the hope that they wouldn't call her out on running from the room.

"See what you did," Mercury teased Cait as he watched her leave. He had no idea what had possessed him to actually tease Ruby like he had but it had been worth it to watch her reaction. When the woman simply made a shooing motion and returned to sharpening all the bladed weapons, she'd collected from the Combat Zone. It had been worth going back with Hancock's scavenging team to get all these weapons.

Opening the door slowly, Ruby really did hope that it wasn't Blake coming over to try changing her mind about trusting Mercury. The faunus had already given her two such lectures and she was starting to grow annoyed; it was worse that Blake simply couldn't see what she did wrong in leaving her behind. Not that she was surprised that Blake was unable to see her own flaws since the faunus had always done what she wanted without thinking of what would happen to the people around her. In truth, this was just another problem in a long list that she had to deal with.

Well on the good side it wasn't Blake on the other side of the door but Weiss; even older and hardened, she recognized her partner. Standing still as death Ruby didn't even notice the other people surrounding her partner, or was that former partner, as old fears began to rise. What if Weiss was like Blake? What if she hated her or wanted nothing to do with her anymore? Almost whimpering Ruby felt the urge to run and hide in her room. Why did she ever think she was prepared for this?

Narrowing her gaze, Weiss studied her partner, because Ruby was hers even after all these years. She was her sister and her leader, there was nothing that Ruby could do to change any of that; however, she could tell that despite sending out that message Ruby was not ready for this meeting. It had always been easy for her to read her leader and she could see both the fear, most likely of her reaction and hope in the younger woman's eyes.

Ruby's hair was longer, it suited her, and her eyes were more guarded than they were four years ago. She could easily recognize the dark red scarf around the woman's neck; it brought back memories of a sarcastic man who treated them all as his children no matter what their last names had been. Watching Ruby shift nervously, Weiss realized that she'd been staring at the younger woman for the last minute or two but that didn't stop her from charging forward and grabbing the girl by the shoulders.

"How dare you wait so long to contact me?" she snapped as she tightened her grip on the girl's shoulders. She'd been looking for Ruby for years only for the girl to send out a message over the radio; the fact she wouldn't have heard the message before she came to the Commonwealth didn't matter to her.

"Do you have any idea how worried I was about you?" she asked without giving Ruby a moment to answer. She'd been very worried; part of her had even thought the girl was dead. Biting his lip Kellogg held back a chuckle as Weiss grabbed Ruby's hand and tugged the girl deeper into the living room. Wordlessly ordering Ruby to stay still as she began circling her.

He'd never expected his impulsive decision to take in the woman four years ago would lead to this amusing turn of events. Ruby was someone that not even the Institute knew about, mainly because he hadn't informed them of the girl's existence. As such she was his only way out if they ever decided to simply cut him loose, which was going to be soon. He could feel his death approaching and something told him it would have something to do with that disastrous mission he'd taken to Vault 111.

"What have you been doing?" she asked as Kellogg shoved Danse into the warehouse before shutting the door. The Paladin was stiff as a board as he stared in shock at his commanding officer, who honestly scared him on a good day so seeing her like this was terrifying. Sitting down on the couch Kellogg settled in to watch the show as Ruby's mind seemed to shut down in the face of her partners hovering.

"Why are you so tiny still? Have you been eating alright?" Weiss asked as she raised Ruby's arm to poke at her ribs. Jolting at her touch the younger woman winced a little while Danse gapped at the actions of his field commander. He'd never seen her actually care enough to act like this and it was strange, to say the least.

"Are you alright?" Weiss asked without noticing Mercury who had come to stand in the kitchen doorway.

For a moment Ruby couldn't breathe as she realized that yes her partner did care and that no she hadn't abandoned her like a certain black cat. Taking a moment to breathe she relaxed knowing that Weiss truly did still care about her; it was better than Blake at least. Offering the older woman a small smile she pushed back the tears threatening to rise as she asked, "Do you want those answered in order or-"

The squeak that left her lips cut off her sentence entirely as Weiss pulled her into a hug. The white-haired woman didn't care who was watching her or how this would be interpreted by her subordinate; the only thing she cared about was Ruby. She didn't care that Ruby had a scent of blood clinging to her clothing, she only cared that Ruby was warm and safe just like she had been four years ago. This was the girl who showed her that the world wasn't black and white; it didn't matter to her if Ruby had become a murder over the last four years.

"I missed you so much," she whispered as her grip on Ruby's jacket tightened. Those were the words that broke what little composure she still had. Collapsing against the older woman, Ruby hid her face in Weiss' shoulder.

Mercury didn't want to admit it, but he was relieved that Weiss was here; there was just the simple fact that he had no idea how she would react when she figured out that he was here too. He did, after all, kill her sister and cause her home to fall from the sky. There wasn't a doubt in his mind that Weiss wouldn't really like the fact that he was anywhere near Ruby; unlike Blake however, she was actually treating Ruby like an important human being.

If Kellogg was shocked that Weiss had just gone from scolding Ruby to clinging to her; he didn't show it, instead he turned his attention to the amused form of Mercury Black. The man was still staring at the situation between Ruby and Weiss, not that Kellogg blamed him, yet his distraction gave Kellogg ample time to study him. While the grey-haired man might not have a reputation as an assassin, he still had the look of one. He also had the expression of someone who was just far too done with the chaos around him. There was also a clear concern for Ruby in his gaze meaning that the man wasn't tricking her, but Kellogg was still concerned that Mercury would hurt her on accident.

Pulling away from Ruby, Weiss noticed the man standing in the kitchen doorway. She'd never expected to see Mercury again nor that she expected to be called here by Ruby. Narrowing her gaze into a glare she stepped fully away from the younger woman as she tried to consider what she was going to do. It was true that he'd royally screwed them over in Remnant, but it was also true that Ruby wouldn't be around him if he was still the same horrible man, he was years ago. Laying a hand on the hilt of her sword, she stalked toward him ignoring the hand Ruby reached toward her.

"Black," she greeted more ice in her tone than he'd ever heard. Over beside the couch, Danse cursed his lack of power armor leaving him unable to hide the shiver at her tone while Kellogg smirked.

Ruby had always mentioned that her partner was a dangerous Woman; right now, he could definitely see what she meant. Glancing at Ruby who met his eyes with gratitude he shrugged off her silent thanks. The redheaded woman was his daughter, honorary, the only person in this world he even slightly cared about enough to look after. Of course, he would track down her teammate the second the white-haired BOS member entered the Commonwealth.

"Schnee," Mercury said giving her a small nod. He easily noticed the way her hand clenched around the weapon at her side and part of him wanted to test her; to see how strong she was after these four long years.

"I assume that whatever mess we're in now is because of you," she stated the room growing colder.

"Raiders," he said putting all the blame on the idiotic scourge. It was the truth and she couldn't prove that he was lying. Looking over her shoulder he noticed that Ruby was staring between them in worry; she most likely thought they might try to kill one another.

"Of course, and why is Ruby involved in your mess?"

"She offered," he said gaining a glare in return. Watching her hand turn white from the force she was using to hold her weapon he wondered what would happen if he baited her into attacking. As if sensing his intentions Ruby sighed in exasperation and sat down on the stairs before hiding her face in her hands. Smirking he turned his attention back to the patiently waiting woman and asked, "listen are you going to stab me or are we going to plan a war?"

"War," she asked tilting her head in curiosity. Ruby shivered slightly at the tone but didn't look up; Mercury had officially gained Weiss' interest. The anger in Weiss' eyes faded as she realized that he wasn't her enemy at the moment and while he might have gotten Ruby mixed up in his mess; the woman would have helped anyway. She was proud that her leader still had the same kindness and compassion that she'd had in Remnant.

"They took Em," he admitted. Shame and self-loathing lit up his face so strongly that she almost took a step back; she'd never thought she'd see such an expression on his face, yet it was understandable. Emerald was the only family he had, and she was willing to bet that he was the one who allowed the Raiders to take the woman in the first place.

However, there was also a much bigger issue with what he said; if Raiders had taken one of them then it wasn't something she could simply ignore. They were faster, stronger, better, and hundreds of different ways than the humans populating the Commonwealth; her pride refused to allow one of their own to languish in a Raider dungeon. There was also the fact that while she might not like Emerald or Mercury, they were the only reason she was able to be in the same room as Ruby again. It irked her to realize that she owed her reunion with Ruby to Mercury Black of all people.

"Let me get this straight, Raiders in their infinite wisdom took one of us," she asked just to clarify. When he nodded, she had the urge to strangle him, but she held back if for no other reason than that even she could see that Ruby clearly cared about the man.

"Yes."

"You know where they are?"

"Yes."

"You know how many there are?"

"Yep," he said knowing that she was going to help them save his sister. Running a hand threw her hair Weiss looked at her leader.

Despite just arriving she could see that Ruby would go through with this foolish plan of saving Emerald no matter what happened; she also noticed that her leader's gaze softened when she looked at the man. She'd completely lost the bet she'd placed on Ruby being asexual then; not that it mattered when her team was scattered. Letting her eyes flow between the two, she relaxed, if this was what Ruby wanted to do then she would follow her leader just like she had four years ago.

"I hate you," she said finally allowing her hand to drop from the hilt of her weapon.

"Feelings mutual," the dark smirk he gave at her words told her that he wasn't lying. Seeing Ruby's face brighten he couldn't bring himself to tease the white-haired woman. Catching sight of the look of pure horror on the Danse's face, Weiss matched his smirk just to make her subordinate's face pale even further. Turning her attention back to Mercury as Ruby stood slowly, she barely heard him ask, "So shall we go take out our rage on poor unsuspecting Raiders?"

"Yes."

She said the word with a smirk and Danse flinched; it was the same expression she used when training the new recruits, the same recruits that curled up in their beds and sobbed. As if sensing his thoughts, she sent him an amused smile that made him wish he was anywhere but, in this room, however, the expression had the opposite effect on Kellogg who grinned. He was glad that Ruby's partner was a bloodthirsty woman and watching her unclip the belt holding her sword and lay it on a table he raised wondered if it was the only weapon she had.

Weiss felt like she was cloud nine, not only was she reunited with Ruby, but her subordinates were getting medical treatment at the Memory Den. While Maxon might not approve, she didn't even care about her mission despite the fact the man would be arriving in the Commonwealth soon after all she'd already gone and gotten the Deep Range Transmitter required to contact him a week ago while Danse was busy holding down the fort at that police station. She just hoped that the man would arrive after she'd dealt with saving Emerald; mainly because she still had no idea how to tell him she was leaving the BOS. Sitting down beside her leader on the stairs she leaned against the woman causing Ruby to hum quietly and hold her hand gently. While it might not last, at the moment they were at peace.


	11. Kellogg's Truth

"SHE DID WHAT!"

The angered shout that left her lips was followed by just pure rage as Weiss processed just what Blake had done. She could understand wanting to start over or find a new way of life but leaving Ruby all alone wasn't acceptable. Not only was the girl the youngest of them, but she also tended to blame herself for everything that went wrong including being alone. Feeling her hand twitch as she felt the urge to squeeze the life from her former teammate, she couldn't stop herself from snarling. What Blake did was nothing short of selfish and cruel; gods she wanted to strangle her.

Jolting Danse did the only sane thing when faced with his commanding officer's wrath; he ran. Watching the man slam the door shut behind him with a half-mumbled excuse about checking on his injured comrades, Kellogg chuckled. Weiss was enraged as she paced the length of the room like a caged wolf after Mercury, mercilessly, caught her up on the last week of events. He was especially enjoying her reaction to learning about Blake's apparent abandonment of their leader, something that annoyed Kellogg as well. Well enraged would be a better word to describe how the man felt but he was more willing to watch the white-haired woman snarl than do so himself. He was old now and with age came laziness; don't get him wrong he would still get off this couch and kick someone's ass, but he'd do it with as little effort as possible.

Ruby stayed perfectly still, mainly because Weiss tended to lash out when angry, while she watched her partner pace. Weiss hadn't changed that much over the last four years; knowing that made her strangely happy. Shifting closer to Mercury who looked very smug if the amused grin he wore was any indication. Cait was standing behind them watching the chaos with a look of confusion yet the cage fighter was still amused.

"Left Ruby alone without a care in the world to how it would affect her," Mercury said only to see Weiss' eyes glance at her sword. It seemed that the woman was on his side when it came to Blake.

As much as he loved watching Weiss rampage, Kellogg hadn't forgotten the reason they were here. He needed to know about the situation in order to decide his best course of action and if he should involve Institute resources or not. Snapping his fingers to get their attention he said, "not to disregard your anger, but we do have a bigger issue." '

Mercury shifted his eyes studying the tall man who had arrived with Weiss; even from here, he could almost smell the scent of death on him. It was obvious to him that this man was a killer just from the way he held himself, if he was being honest, it was just like how his father had moved. He just couldn't tell if this man was a mercenary or an assassin; with his luck, it might just be both. In truth, to him it didn't matter who this man was; he'd answered Ruby's distress signal so that made him an ally for the time being. Hearing the floor creak, he watched Weiss sit back down on the step facing the man as her anger slowly cooled; he did not want to be Blake right now.

"The Raiders," Ruby said softly gaining all their attention as she glanced between Mercury and Weiss. She had no idea where she wanted to sit right now. On one hand, Weiss was her partner, and she was actually happy to see her, yet Mercury made her feel safe. As if sensing her thoughts Mercury met her eyes before subtly motioning to the woman. He could tell that right now Weiss needed Ruby far more than he did, besides he had Cait.

"Exactly, now how many people do we have on our side," Weiss asked as Ruby sat down beside her causing the white-haired woman to relax.

She'd been imagining horrible scenarios for years. Ruby was the youngest and most naïve of them; this world had the ability to break someone like her leader. Even after all this time, she knew that Ruby still had that spark of hope that she'd used to unite their world in order to stop Salem; however, that hope wasn't infinite. Sitting here beside the younger girl it was all too easy for her to notice that Ruby's hope had dwindled over the last four years. The loneliness and hardship had dulled those once expressive silver eyes making her hate this world more than she already had. If Ruby hadn't been alone, without her team, would her eyes have lost their light?

"Hancock will be coming with us," Ruby said causing Kellogg to groan.

"Of course, he is," the mercenary said. Hancock wouldn't waste a chance to go out and cause chaos; the man thrived in chaos. That just meant Kellogg would have to keep an eye on two people rather than just Ruby.

"Blake's here along with her partner," Mercury reminded them all with annoyance in his voice. The annoyance with Blake was something they all shared, except Ruby who was most likely still blaming herself for Blake leaving. She had a horrible habit of blaming herself for things far beyond her control.

"Then there's Clark and Kandy along with their team," Ruby said hoping not to linger on the topic of her former teammate.

Those names caused Kellogg to stiffen slightly as he processed them. He was pretty sure that those were the names of the survivors from Vault 111; the very same survivors that he'd managed to tick off sixty years ago. He'd heard word that they were out and about from his Institute contacts and knew without a doubt they would be looking for him to settle the score. They would also want the child back, but the kid was now running the Institute.

"The ones from Vault 111," Kellogg asked trying to keep his voice neutral. Maybe he would get lucky and it wouldn't be those two. However, he was pretty sure whatever luck he had left was being used to up his chances of finding vintage cigars so he wouldn't be surprised if the two came through the door right at this moment and started shooting at him.

"I don't know, we haven't heard much about their past," Ruby said her eyes glancing at him with concern. She could tell that he was anxious about something although she had no idea what he was thinking.

"Wait I heard Clark say something to Macready about a vault," Cait said rubbing her head as she tried to remember. She didn't usually spy on people so all the eavesdropping she did was during their casual conversations.

Well, he was dead, there was no way that the two survivors from the Vault had forgotten what he'd done. He himself hadn't forgotten either, after all, it wasn't every day that he killed someone's wife before stealing their child. He didn't regret his decision to sell his soul to the Institute, but he did feel slightly guilty about what he'd done to the man's wife. It hadn't been necessary to kill the woman; however, he'd done it because he'd been angry at the world and about what happened to his family. At that time, he hadn't cared about who he would end up hurting, yet now he had something worth living for. Still, his past was catching up to him rather quickly now.

"Is something wrong," Ruby asked. She could tell that Kellogg was worried about something enough that he had started to pale which was strange. In all the time they'd known each other he'd never shown his emotions quite so clearly as he was now.

"Clark is an enemy then," Mercury asked drawing their attention. He understood completely the expression of annoyance and slight horror that passed the other man's face; he just hoped that whatever feud they had wouldn't interfere with saving his sister. If needed he could always just eliminate the siblings, after all, Kellogg seemed far more important to Ruby than a group of four they'd just met.

"No, he's a mistake," Kellogg said before realizing how cruel the words sounded, however, it was true that if he'd killed both the survivors when he'd had the chance then they wouldn't have the chance to kill him. They did have a chance too since he wasn't about to abandoned Ruby to fight a hoard of Raiders with almost no chance of success. Seeing Weiss's eyes narrow he watched her shift closer to Ruby who seemed to dread what he was about to say. At least the white-haired woman would protect her if he wasn't around. Shaking off all thoughts of his imminent doom he said, "I work for the Institute. As such my missions for them are a little more morally grey than most jobs."

Weiss straightened as she processed his words while Cait flinched and shifted to be further behind Mercury. Both women had heard enough rumors about the Institute to be worried, yet Weiss didn't react with fear. The directive from Maxon was that the BOS was going to eliminate the Institute and all synths. She wasn't afraid of the Institute for one simple reason; they were no match for her. No matter who or what they sent she was stronger and faster.

"Do you kidnap people for them," Cait asked her voice barely being heard despite the quiet in the room. It was just a second, but Mercury noticed the vulnerability in her eyes causing him to stiffen. Glancing at Ruby he wasn't surprised to see that she was still relaxed; either she'd known about Kellogg working for the Institute or she trusted him enough not to care.

"Not after sixty years ago, now I just kill people for them," he explained while trying to push back the satisfaction he got from the woman fearing him. Well not him but the Institute where he was the most dangerous assassin; until he fell out of favor with Father, but he tried not to think about that.

"What happened sixty years ago," Weiss asked sensing a story. Feeling Ruby lean against her she raised a hand to play with the girl's braid. She'd missed the feeling of being able to play with her leader's hair.

"Just how old are you," Mercury asked raising an eyebrow. When the man twitched at the question, he resisted the urge to smirk. Maybe the man was sensitive about his age?

"I have cybernetics keeping me alive and in good health; although they do have to be maintained every few years," Kellogg admitted sending a glare at the younger man. He was already starting to dislike this boy, however, there was nothing he could do to get rid of him. Wait…this was the boy Ruby told him about with the metal legs; how long had it been since Mercury had gotten his legs checked out. Deciding to bring it up with the boy later he said, "I'm over eighty years old."

"Interesting," Mercury stated with a smirk. Now he could call him an old without the man being able to argue about it. Ruby twitched as the two exchanged silent glares but otherwise didn't react to the news.

She didn't care about how old Kellogg was; he'd saved her and that was all that mattered. He could have told them that he'd taken part in genocide ordered by the Institute, yet she wouldn't care. There was nothing he could say or do that would change how much she trusted him because he would never hurt her; he'd promised. She could still remember that day: the feeling of blood and skin under her nails, the cold soaking into her bones, and the single promise that kept her alive. If it hadn't been for him, she would be dead.

"What happened sixty years ago," Weiss repeated ignoring the silent exchange of glares between the two men. He looked good for someone over eighty years old; however, his age didn't matter right now. They needed all the information to make a decision about how they would proceed. Getting wrapped up in unnecessary arguments wasn't going to save them any time or get them any closer to Emerald. Unless the confrontation was with Blake; that was going to be completely necessary.

"I accompanied a team of Institute scientists to Vault 111 to get a sample for their synth research," he said before stopping himself. He wasn't afraid to admit that he'd stolen a child nor was he unwilling to. That child was the bane of his current existence after all, yet he had no idea how to phrase it without sounding like he didn't regret what he did. In truth, he regretted taking the kid every time the man decided he needed to go to some dangerous area and retrieve something only to turn around and admit he was hoping that the trip led to his death.

"I take it this sample wasn't something easy to acquire," Weiss asked knocking him out of his thoughts. Watching her unbraid Ruby's hair so she could better play with it, he sighed. There was no point in hiding it or delaying telling them.

"They didn't tell me all the details," he admitted which made Mercury scoff. He could easily tell that the boy thought he was foolish for not getting all the details; looking back now he agreed that hadn't been his best moment. Deciding to ignore Mercury he said, "The sample was a baby born just before the bombs dropped."

Cait flinched at the blunt way he spoke but she had no idea how to react to the knowledge that someone had stolen a child. The only thing was she was the only one shocked. Mercury was smirking as if he was amused by the entire situation. She could see the expression from where she stood beside him, and it helped her relax. If her contract holder wasn't afraid then what reason did she have to fear anything?

"I killed the mother of the child and gave it the scientists," he continued noticing that Weiss was paying attention to him now. Her blue eyes were narrowed in his direction however she made no move to speak. Sighing he said, "that was sixty years ago. I suspect Clark is that child's father."

"But then how can they be alive," Cait asked only to shrink behind Mercury when Kellogg glanced at her.

"Cryo," he said. While the three Remnant survivors nodded, Cait tilted her head in confusion. Taking pity on her he explained, "they were frozen in cryostats on the day the bombs dropped."

Weiss frowned; Ruby had surely made some dangerous friends since they'd been separated. She doubted that Ruby even cared about all the horrible things they'd done in their lives; she'd always just accepted them for what they were. Glancing at Mercury she found the same lack of caring on his face that she felt.

"Okay," she said with a nod. The simple acceptance was echoed by Mercury even as she stood slowly. Stretching she picked up her sword before heading toward the door saying, "I'm going to check on my subordinates."

As much as she didn't want to leave Ruby; she was sure that leaving her idiots alone in a town full of ghouls would cause issues. Especially since Danse was inherently racist with everyone who didn't look human. Opening the door, she sent a wave before leaving them alone. Kellogg stared after for a long moment before turning to Ruby who was looking after her with longing, but she didn't make a move to follow. Instead, she turned her attention to him and offered a small smile.

"Have you been to see Hancock yet," she asked tilting her head slightly. For a moment he seemed to still at the question before he shot a glance at the door.

"No, why has he done something stupid again," he asked already running through scenarios in his head. While the ghoul wasn't an idiot, he did have a habit of leaping before he looked.

"He just missed you, Kell," she said softly. He barely gave the words much thought before he was nodding at her and moving toward the door. Watching him leave she chuckled at how quickly he moved when the other man was mentioned. Standing she ran a hand through her hair as she almost bounced in place.

Weiss was by her side again; there was nothing in this world that could stop the happy feeling in her chest. Well, nothing but the reminder that her other teammate had chosen to abandon her and that her sister was still nowhere to be seen. Yang still had time however so maybe her sister would make it to Goodneighbor; there was a possibility that she was just far away. She wanted to believe that Yang hadn't abandoned her too.

"Well I'll make something to eat," she said with a bright smile as she passed Cait and Mercury.

(Jaune)

His sanity was broken if he'd ever thought that dragging his entire fighting force through a Raider infected area was a good idea. It wasn't even the Raiders who were the issues it was his men. Not only had they picked every fight they could find but they were happy to be out of the base as if he'd been torturing them by having them stay in one area. If he had to listen to one more discussion about how far it was to Goodneighbor, he would punch someone. Feeling his arms almost tremble with annoyance he let out an exasperated sigh.

At least one thing had come of all of this and that was the weapon stuffed in his bag. They'd gotten it from a farmer that they'd saved along the way. It was meant as a gift to Ruby when they managed to finally get to Goodneighbor. He hoped that she would be happy with his gift, however, he also hoped that she was still there when he arrived. At the wandering pace they were moving at, he doubted that would be the case. If he'd thought it would do any good he would have ordered them to speed up.

"Hey, it's okay Your Highness, we'll make it in time," Aiden said patting his shoulder. Twitching in exasperation at the nickname he touched the hilt of his sword in a warning that did nothing.

"Please don't call me that," he said slumping slightly. Aiden had seen him at his worst, and he knew that nothing he did would make the man afraid of him; not even death glares. Frowning he said, "and it would be faster if we didn't pick every fight possible on the way."

"Where would be the fun in that," Aiden teased smirking at the other man. It was so much fun to annoy their King.

"Look there's the city!"

The announcement was followed by him breathing a sigh of relief. Traveling with these idiots was worse than the war.


	12. Blame Game

Blake was starting to regret agreeing to eat at Ruby's warehouse. Not only was Weiss currently glaring at her; when had the woman even shown up, but the Vault survivors were trying to set Kellogg on fire with their eyes. They weren't having much success although she doubted that they would appreciate her pointing that out. She only knew the man's name because Kandy had hissed it the moment, she saw him. Deacon was watching from beside her, but she knew he was ready to move at a moment's notice. The smirk on Mercury's face wasn't helping her nerves either but she supposed that he had a right to be smug, after all, her own teammate seemed seconds away from strangling her. At least now she knew why Ruby had ordered everyone to disarm themselves before letting them into the building.

Shifting away from Kandy as the woman let out a low growl, she accidentally met Weiss's blue eyes that could have frozen an ocean. She knew Weiss and if the woman was still the same as four years ago then she would have better luck thawing a glacier than cooling down the girl's temper. Weiss had always been protective of Ruby seeing her as a little sister; they all had. Mercury must have told the white-haired woman about her actions; no doubt embellishing them to make her seem like the villain. There was no way Weiss would believe or understand anything she said when it came to Ruby.

Glancing at Ruby she wasn't surprised to see the girl watching the tension-filled room with a guarded gaze. Kellogg was the man that she'd seen with Ruby on the day she'd decided to leave her alone; she still didn't regret her choice. Cait and Mercury stood beside the younger woman with varying degrees of anxiousness and amusement. She hated the smirk on his face; this entire situation was his fault, not hers. Feeling her ears twitch under her bow she shivered a Weiss let out an enraged hiss. Meeting the woman's gaze with slight panic Blake almost felt relieved when the man behind her old teammate placed a hand on her shoulder. That relief quickly died when Weiss twisted around to snarl at him like a wounded animal; wisely the man took a large step back.

Stepping into the middle of the room, Mercury placed a cruel smirk on his face as he drew everyone's attention with a shrill whistle. From the cold glance in Blake's direction, he knew exactly what the sound would do to her ears. She didn't give him the pleasure of wincing, but her grimace still caused him to smirk; oh, how she hated him. Stepping aside as Ruby gave him a thankful nod, he kept an eye on everyone in the room but mostly on Blake. Kandy and Weiss were the only two who didn't respond to his whistle and kept glaring at their respective targets. Even Clarke responded although his expression was torn between disgust and anger.

"So, I know that some of us have issues with each other," Ruby said as if stating the obvious would help any of them calm down. Turning her attention to Clarke and his sister first she motioned at Kellogg before stating, "in agreement for you sparing his life, Kellogg has agreed to tell you everything about the institute and your son."

"What if we don't agree," Kandy snapped switching her glare to Ruby. Instead of flinching back the redhead smirked.

"I'll kill you and your team," she said bluntly. Seeing the woman still, she tilted her head back trying to replicate the expression she'd seen on Cinder's face almost every time they clashed. The arrogant expression full of confidence didn't come easy to her but the attempt was all that mattered. She didn't want to fight with her hired help, but she would if they made a move to hurt Kell. His life was worth more than theirs.

The shock on Blake's face was echoed by Mercury although his was more due to the expression on the petite redhead's face than the words. Schooling his face, he turned his smirk in Kandy's direction as the woman sneered. Her brother placed a hand on her shoulder to calm her down as he threw a considering glance in Kellogg's direction. He'd never wanted to kill Kellogg in the first place despite how much he hated the man. If they could get the information on Shawn without killing anyone, he would rather take this chance.

"What assurance to we have that he'll be telling the truth," he asked with a frown. He wouldn't put it past the man to give them false information.

"Mine. I swear on my life that I'll tell you the truth," Kellogg stated. The Institute had been trying to cut him loose for months, he didn't care what they thought anymore. Now that Ruby was finally making a move, he wanted to see what became of the girl he'd saved. It was also doubtful that Hancock would let him leave his sight due to his 'apparent suicidal tendencies'. He had no idea where the ghoul had gotten that idea from when the man couldn't go a day without his chems. However at the moment none of that mattered even if he knew Hancock was just waiting on him to screw up so that he could be confined to the town.

"Th-"

"Agreed," Clarke said cutting off his sister before she could start a fight. If this got him closer to his son then he would take the deal; he would take any deal to save Shawn. It wasn't as if they couldn't just kill Kellogg later if he turned on them. Meeting his sister's eyes watched her huff before relaxing as she accepted his choice.

"Thank you," Ruby said with a nod. Relaxing she offered them a small smile. She really hadn't wanted to threaten them. She was glad that they'd taken the deal because she didn't want their blood on her hands. Feeling Kellogg lay a hand on her head she hummed softly as he sent his own nod toward the two. He knew that the two would never accept him, and he was fine with that.

"Now w-"

"Now we deal with our stray cat," Weiss snapped unable to stay silent any longer. Seeing Blake flinch she smirked. It was nice to know that her former teammate still feared her temper and she was going to use that fear to cut her down. She could almost feel Danse shudder behind her as he recognized the tone in her voice. Ignoring the glances thrown around her, she had eyes only for her teammate who was looking down at the floor. Yes, the floor was definitely going to save her from getting yelled at.

"Weiss not now," Ruby begged her hand stretching out as if to hold the white-haired woman back. Feeling herself being tugged back she glared at Kellogg, who simply shook his head. This was a long time coming and they needed to get this out. If they went into combat like this, they might kill each other rather than the enemy.

"Yes now," Weiss said. Meeting her leader's eyes, she silently begged Ruby to understand that she needed to do this. There was so much wrong with the world they found themselves in, but Blake leaving Ruby alone was the worst. She had to know why. Watching Ruby look down at the ground in defeat she turned her frozen gaze to her former teammate who was unable to meet her eyes. Crossing her arms, she said, "Ruby she left you when she was the only one of us who knew where to find you. I knew she was a coward, but she crossed a line this time."

"I agree with the Ice Queen," Mercury said causing Blake to send him a glare. Not that he cared. Grinning at the faunus he shifted to put himself between Blake and Ruby which sent more of a signal to the woman than anything he could have ever said.

Exchanging looks of discomfort the vault siblings moved to stand on the opposite side of the room giving the two women enough room to kill each other. Apparently, they'd managed to step in something much more dramatic than they'd known. The only upside was that Kellogg was within reach, but they couldn't kill him, still he could lead them to Shawn. The only thing that mattered was getting his son back. Anything else was a means to an end.

"I-"

"What the hell were you thinking? Ruby is the youngest, she should never have been on her own," Weiss asked. Ruby was innocent but now she was a killer just like the rest of them. None of this should have ever happened. Feeling Danse flinch behind her, she said, "Do you have any idea how long I searched for her while you were ignoring her existence? Ruby is our leader, not someone you can just abandon when y-"

"The war is over Weiss! We don't need a leader anymore," Blake snapped, her golden eyes tore into the heiress as she finally met her eyes.

Stepping forward the faunus didn't notice the subject of their conversation flinch or how Mercury's eyes flashed with anger. The war was over, they didn't have to fight anymore. They didn't need to follow Ruby anymore. She cared about the younger woman but staying with Ruby would have only reminded her of the people she'd lost. It was better for her that she left Ruby alone, but Weiss would never accept that answer. To Weiss Ruby had always been the light to show them the way and that wasn't fair. The heiress would never understand that what she saw in Ruby wasn't what everyone else did.

"Ruby is the only reason that the war is o-"

"Ruby is the reason we were fucking fighting in the first place. Sorry if I don't want to be reminded of the people, I lost every fucking day!"

She didn't mean to say it, but the second the words left her lips she felt better than she had in days. Letting it all out into the open had helped her but not Ruby. Sucking in a deep breath, the redhead flinched as she realized exactly what her former teammate was saying. It wasn't her fault… was it? She'd fought because Ozpin needed her too. She'd tried to save everyone. So, their deaths weren't her fault, were they? Salem would have attacked either way. There had been no stopping a war between two immortals.

But she'd been the one to drag her team into it hadn't she. In a way Blake was right that this was all her fault. It was her fault that Atlas fell from the sky. It was her fault they were too late to stop Salem. If she'd been faster, stronger, then none of this would have happened. In a way, she was to blame for everything that happened because she was too weak to stop it. Now she was nothing but a reminder of all that they'd lost in the war. Curling in on herself, the woman didn't notice when Kellogg left her side to snap at the faunus or even Cait reaching out to wrap an arm around her shoulders.

Mercury Blake was not a good man; he was a killer. That did not mean however that he didn't feel something for the woman behind him. Ruby had never been the cause of the war, for Blake to suggest that was laughable, but she had been a thorn in Salem's side since the moment Ozpin recruited her. The compassion that she showed to them, her enemies, had been the only reason that they agreed not to kill her. She wasn't like her teammates; she didn't discriminate against who she saved based on their allegiance. Hell, she'd helped Tyrian fight off a group of beowolves that interrupted their fight; if that didn't show exactly who she was then nothing would. She was a huntress, a warrior. He'd twisted to look a Ruby when Blake said those damning words and found her in shock.

It was obvious that she'd never even considered that seeing her might bring pain to her teammates. Staring at the girl who was lost in her own guilt and self-loathing he cursed before stalking toward her. Ruby was strong, he knew that, but having her here when he dealt with her former teammate might be too much for the sniper. It was bad enough that she'd already gone into shock over the careless faunus, he didn't want to cause her any more pain by having her watch him kill her. Slipping one hand behind her neck he pressed down on the presser point that would knock her out causing her to crumble in the cage fighter's arms. The glare Cait sent him at the action caused him to raise an eyebrow and wait for her to snap at him. He might hold her contract, but she was still a woman, and it had been obvious from the start that she liked Ruby much more than him.

Cutting her eyes from his, Cait lowered the smaller woman to the ground with a huff. She didn't agree with his action, but she wasn't about to start a fight with him right now, not when he looked ready to murder someone. Kneeling on the ground with Ruby's head on her lap, the woman flickered her gaze up to watch Mercury. He was taking the black-haired woman's words personally, but she didn't know why. There was so much about them that she didn't know, but she did know that he was dangerous.

"Get out," Weiss hissed wishing that she had her weapon. She was furious enough that her own hands were shaking. The anger she felt was almost overwhelming, but she held herself back. Or in truth, it was the hand Kellogg had put on her shoulder that kept her from lashing out.

"You have no right to tell me what to do," Blake snapped despite knowing she was in the wrong. In truth, she was in far too deep to stop talking now. She had no choice left but to argue back or her pride would suffer.

"I-"

"The war would have happened either way!"

It was the first time he'd shouted since the argument began, and the words left his lips without any hesitation. He'd killed hundreds, but even he knew that the war would have happened either way. The entire conflict was inviable, even if Ozpin had managed to sustain the status quo, eventually war would have broken out. Nothing that any of them did ever mattered in the end. He could still remember the day he found out the truth only to realize that he had no choice but to fight. None of them ever had a choice when they'd been born with war in their blood.

"Do you really think that anyone could have stopped what happened? No one could have, not even Cinder," he said meeting Blake's eyes. He could see the anger in her gaze just as clearly as he could see the hate. She would never believe him, nothing he could say would convince her of his intent. There was no point in even trying. Turning away from her, he bent down picking up Ruby in his arms. Standing he ignored, everyone but Cait as he moved to walk up the stairs.

(Jaune)

There was a difference between being idiotic and suicidal. He was vaguely sure his men were the later; that feeling became a certainty after Rodger threw a delayed explosive into a shopping cart and pushed it down the street. He had no idea why the man had thought it was a good idea but after the others started cheering, he wondered if he was the only sane person in the group. It wasn't a good feeling.

The worst thing about the situation was that none of them knew how annoying they were. If he heard anyone say something about adopting a baby deathclaw again he would kill someone; probably Freddie since he was the one asking. Hearing Mitch voice his opinion on if fungus was edible, he wanted to bang his head on the wall. Any wall, it didn't matter if it was the wall to a building or if he had to pick up a piece of wood off the ground. They were worse than toddlers.

Don't get him wrong his men were amazing in a fight, but they had horribly small attention spans. Rodger was a genus with explosives, Freddie was a master at snipping, and Mitch could kill anyone with his bare hands. Sadly, their positive traits didn't make up for their negative traits. Glancing back at his small army he wondered how the leader of Goodneighbor would respond to him bringing them with him before deciding not to chance it. According to the nice drifter, they'd asked a few miles back, the town was close. He could leave Aiden in charge and go meet up with Ruby.

Spotting an abandoned building with his eyes he motioned for them to follow. Laying a hand on the hilt of his sword he was glad to see the building was really abandoned. He hated killing people. Dropping his hand, he turned to Aiden saying, "spread out and ensure that the building is empty. I'll be going to Goodneighbor to meet with Ruby."

"Alone," Aiden asked. Nodding Jaune went to give more orders only to be cut off by Tabby grabbing his shoulders.

"You CAN'T go alone," the black-haired woman cried. Feeling mildly dizzy he shook her off as the others nodded in agreement.

"Why not," he asked ignoring the laughter from Aiden. The other man wasn't even trying to help.

"Don't take this the wrong way boss, but you're really attractive," Tabby said. Shifting on her feet the green-eyed woman glanced around for help.

"Like almost girl pretty," Mitch said with a slight blush on his face. Jaune twitched and resolutely ignored the fact he heard Anna mumble something about thinking he was a girl when they met. Reaching up to touch his shoulder-length hair he regretted allowing it to get this long.

"So," he asked sounding more annoyed by the second.

Glancing between each other they shifted unable to decide how to tell him without sounding like they were judging him. They were just worried about him. Huffing, Aiden placed a hand over his mouth to try and muffle his laughter when Jaune glared at him. It didn't even help that this wasn't the weirdest thing they'd done. The silence was broken by Tabby who lunged forward to grab his shoulders again.

"Raiders could kidnap you and turn you into a sex slave!"

The entire room spun as she shook him violently. Her words caused Aiden to forget about hiding his laughter. Jaune stumbled as he was released by the woman. Raising a hand to his head, he wondered if he was surrounded by idiots. He could deal with any Raiders who came after him easily. it would take a literal army to defeat him. There was no way he would be beaten by people as weak as Raiders. The very idea was insulting.

"Really Tabby," Anna asked sounding as if she was exhausted. It was tiring having a best friend as wild as Tabby.

"It's true," Tabby snapped. Crossing her arms, she frowned under their annoyed looks. All she did was voice what they were all thinking.

"You didn't have to say it like that," Rodger said with a scolding tone.

"I'm not going to get kidnapped," Jaune snapped trying to cut off the conversation. Sneering at them he laid a hand on his sword daring them to speak.

"Yeah, because you're not going alone," Tabby stated. She had no sense of self-preservation at all.

"Exactly, take Aiden with you," Mitch ordered. His support was mostly because if both the responsible ones were gone, he could cause as much trouble as he wanted.

"I need Aiden to stay and watch you guys," Jaune stated. With a glare he looked over at the laughing man who was holding his stomach.

"We can look after ourselves," Tabby said with an offended tone. Raising an eyebrow Jaune glanced past her to Rodger who was tinkering with a land mine. For a moment they all stared at the man who was happily humming as he worked, then the black-haired woman slumped.

"Fine but you're not going alone."

(Ruby)

Waking up in her room, she wanted to be angry with Mercury, but she couldn't. The emotion just wouldn't replace the heartache she felt. What if the reason Yang wasn't here was because she felt the same as Blake? Had she done something wrong to earn this treatment? It wasn't like she'd started the war. Curling on her side she frowned as she pressed her face against the pillow. It wasn't fair that she got blamed for everything. Hearing footsteps she opened her eyes to look at Mercury. He looked unusually solemn as he sat down beside her.

"I was just thinking that this entire situation would have gone better if you'd never sent that message."

Sitting up slowly, Ruby could see his point. Throwing a glance at Cait who was curled up on the couch, she sighed. There had been a lot of good that came of sending the message but at the same time, she'd gotten hurt because Blake showed up. While she might've still gotten hurt if she hadn't sent the message, she couldn't be sure. Even so, she had to wonder if this would have happened if she hadn't decided to send out a distress call.

"Then I realized that Weiss might've killed us both if you hadn't," he said sounding as if he truly believed it.

Blinking Ruby considered his words before nodding in agreement. There was a high chance that Weiss would have murdered them both if she'd found them on her own. Remembering that the distress call had brought both teammates to her and now just Blake made it a lot easier to stomach. She didn't need to think about how much Blake hated her to know that Weiss loved her. While it was true that it still hurt to think about Blake's words, it was far easier to accept them knowing that Weiss was here too. She didn't regret sending out that distress call.

"You okay red," he asked. There wasn't a lot he regretted but allowing Blake to get so out of control was one of those few things. He should've crushed her neck before she could upset Ruby.

"Do you think she was right," Ruby asked instead of answering. Looking down at her hands she wondered if there had been more that she could've done to save Remnant.

"Do you?"

Clenching her hands, she frowned. By the time she was born Salem had already built an army and Ozpin had already decided to go to war. The Fall Maiden had been attacked before she even started going to Beacon. Despite what Blake seemed to think, she couldn't have controlled the course of the war any more than Salem could have controlled the Gods. She was a pawn in their game, not a player and by the time she gained enough power to become one, it had been too late.

"No," she said. Looking up at him she frowned at the guarded look in his eyes. Almost on instinct, she shifted to lay her head on his shoulder in order to offer some form of comfort. Playing with the hem of her shirt she said, "I think that despite having four years to come to terms with everything, Blake still mourns for those we lost. I think she wants someone to blame."

"What about you, are you angry about everything that happened," he asked. He didn't want her to blame him for everything that happened, but it wouldn't surprise him; he'd been her enemy after all. There was more blood staining his hands than he could ever atone for, not that he wanted to.

"No," she said softly. What was the point of being angry when it wouldn't change anything? She would still be sitting here if she was angry, he just wouldn't be here with her. She'd accepted everything years ago. In truth, she'd never been angry, to begin with. The only person she'd had the urge to kill was already dead by her hand, so she was satisfied. Smiling sadly, she said, "I don't blame you or anyone for what happened."

Allowing a small smirk to appear on his face, Mercury hummed softly in agreement. His worries faded slightly. While he doubted Weiss would be so forgiving; he was sure the girl was waiting for her chance to corner him, it was nice to know Ruby didn't hate him. Opening his mouth to speak, he was interrupted by Cait sitting up quickly. Annoyance shined in her eyes as she glared at both of them.

"Listen I love that you're having a heart to heart, but can we please go back to sleep," she snapped. Seeing the mischief that sparked in Mercury's eyes she barely had a second before being forced to duck down. letting the pillow fly over her head, she ignored Ruby's startled yelp in favor of tossing her own pillow back at him. Grinning when it slammed into his face, she fell back cackling when it dropped into his lap.

Hiding her face, Ruby couldn't stop herself from laughing at his insulted expression. The small playful growl he let out did worry her, however. Glancing up as he raised the pillow threateningly, she scooted away. Before Mercury could start a pillow war, the door slammed open revealing Weiss. Panting the white-haired woman struggled to catch her breath for a moment before looking up to meet her leader's gaze.

"Ruby! Jaune's here!"

(Yang)

Bright red blood clung to her hand and the knife she was holding. Slowly uncurling her fingers from the hilt of the knife she could barely believe what she'd just done. She could barely hear the radio in the corner repeating her sister's message over the chaotic screaming in the camp. Rolling off the slowly cooling corpse of the man who'd been her master, she breathed deeply as her mind struggled to catch up with her actions. She'd just killed the man who'd owned her for three years; gods it felt good. Despite the collar around her neck, she was free; finally, free. All it had taken was three years and an incredibly lucky attack.

Pushing herself off the ground, she ignored the quickly cooling blood on her skin in favor of finding clothes. She could worry about the blood once she managed to get away from camp. Grabbing a pair of loose pants, she frowned before glancing at the dress on the bed. It would be easier to pull on the dress than try to deal with pants. Ignoring the voice in her head that hissed and spat at the idea of putting back on the sunflower yellow dress, she pulled it on easily. There wasn't enough time for her to worry about how much she hated the dress.

"Anybody home?"

Lips pulling back into a snarl she glanced at the knife still embedded in the raider leader's chest, before deciding she wouldn't make it. Grabbing the pistol off the crate beside the bed she tensed as a pale hand pulled open the tent. Holding the gun steady she could only hear her heart pounding in her chest as cold eyes met her own. Keeping her face blank, she refused to shiver as he ran his gaze over her body. The stupid dress didn't cover anything.

Slowly turning his eyes from the girl, he motioned for his followers to stand down as he smirked at her. For a one-armed woman, she was skilled to had killed his target. How interesting. Turning his attention back to the woman with tangled blonde hair, he wasn't worried that she would shoot him. From the collar on her neck, she was a slave. Taking advantage of the chaos of his attack seemed like something only a survivor would do. He could use survivors like her.

"Yo, I'm assuming you're the one that killed him," he said. Putting on his most charming smile, he wasn't surprised when she glanced down at her victim. The gun in her hand never wavered even when he took a step into the tent. She looked frail and he could see cuts and bruises on her skin. The sight caused his blood to boil; he might be a cruel bastard, but he wouldn't hurt someone like her. Not where there were other methods of getting what he wanted.

"Yes," she said simply.

Narrowing her gaze, she slowly took a step back when he moved closer to her. She had no idea what he wanted but from his gear, he wasn't some normal raider trash. Shifting slightly, she met his brown eyes for only a moment before looking back down at his hands. They were empty but she didn't doubt he was dangerous. He walked like Mercury; if this man was an assassin then she really didn't want to tangle with him, but from the interest in his eyes he wasn't just going to let her go.

"Want to join my team," he asked. The smirk on his face didn't do anything to soothe her wariness. If anything, the question caused her to tense even more; what would he do if she refused. He didn't seem like a man that liked to hear the word no. she needed to find her sister, not be trapped with another man seeking to use her. The expression on his face darkened just enough to put her on edge as he said, "I'm about to really shake up the Commonwealth."

This entire territory was going to be his. He wanted all of it under his banner and nothing would stop him from accomplishing that goal. He'd already conquered the capital wasteland; the Commonwealth would be no different. He didn't need her on his side, but she was interesting. Collecting interesting things was something he was good at.

"I don't even know who you are," she said. The words were to stall and they both knew it. Grinning at her, he moved forward only stopping when the barrel of her gun pressed against his chest. From the shocked expression on her face, she hadn't expected the move.

"I'm Adam," he said. Holding out his hand he asked, "So, sweetheart, how about joining the winning side."

Tightening her grip on the gun she considered how easy it would be to shoot him, before relaxing. Even if she did kill him, his men would kill her, and she wasn't of any use to her sister dead. As long as she had a chance to find Ruby there wasn't any option of her dying. She needed to find her sister, even if she had to work for this man to do so. Slowly laying the gun in his hand, she moved away from him.

"I'm Yang."

Tossing away the gun in his hand, he didn't need another Raider pipe pistol, he reached out grabbing her collar. Feeling her hand close around his wrist he grinned at her. It was nice to know she still had a spine; he would hate for his newest pet to be a coward. Her guarded gaze reminded him a lot of Eve; he couldn't wait to see if the two women got along. Pulling her toward him he took a moment to look over the long scratch marks decorating her shoulders. His newest pet would defiantly need to see a medic. He would hate for her to get an infection.

Glaring at the man for the invasion of space. She watched his eyes trail over her injuries as an anxious feeling settled in her stomach. Why did she feel like she'd just signed over her soul to the devil? Stumbling as he released her collar she trailed along as he started dragging her out of the tent.

"Nice to meet you, sweetheart, now let's get rid of that collar."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I finally got around to cross-posting this. Anyway, here is the character faction list. 
> 
> Blake: Rail Road Agent
> 
> Weiss: Brotherhood of Steel Commander
> 
> Jaune: Mercenary force Leader
> 
> Yang: Raiders 
> 
> Emerald: Unknown
> 
> Ruby: None
> 
> Mercury: None
> 
> Clark (fallout 4 protagonist): Minutemen General
> 
> Adam (fallout 3 protagonist): Raiders
> 
> I welcome questions! Have a good day.


	13. Dragon and Demon

Letting herself be pulled into Jaune's arms for the first time in four years, Ruby ignored the bristling of the woman standing beside him. He was just as warm as four years ago. The way his arms wrapped around her made her feel safe; her knight was finally by her side again. Pulling away from him before his companion could murder her, she reached up to tug on a strand of his shoulder-length hair. The chuckle earned from her action was all she needed to feel happy. Stepping back as Weiss came forward to give her own greeting, she took a quick glance around the room.

Hancock and Kellogg had taken the couch and were watching the reunion with amusement; mostly because the mayor had come to the party late and hadn't heard what Blake said. She had no doubt the man would have kicked Blake out of his town if he'd heard her. Danse was standing behind the couch keeping an eye on his commander. Ruby had been worried about having a BOS soldier in her house, but he seemed alright for working for racists. Clarke and his team were watching from the quarter of the room that they'd claimed as their own. She felt a little bad about dragging them into her chaos; then she remembered they were paid to be here. Cait was sitting on the stairs watching everything closely while Mercury had chosen to hover at her side. He looked wary of Jaune not that she could blame him.

The least said about Blake was for the best. She was trying to ignore the black-haired woman who was standing with Deacon in the corner. People with their heads stuck in the past were the worst, and she wanted nothing to do with the woman. Blake had already made it clear she was no longer a member of Team RWBY. There was no reason to treat her as anything other than a stranger. Just because it hurt to remember the words, she'd said didn't mean she would allow Blake to ruin this rescue mission. Although she did wonder if Blake knew where Yang was.

"So, I'm assuming Emerald is the one in danger," Jaune said once Weiss moved away. Staring at the assassin, he raised an eyebrow at the man. Despite how clearly careful the man had tried to be, he'd found Mercury with his easily.

He would have guessed Yang, but the only reason Mercury would be here was to save Emerald. Unless the man had changed over the last few years. It was doubtful but he supposed that if he could become the leader of a mercenary group, then Mercury could gain a conscience. Shrugging off the Mercury problem for a moment, he glanced at Blake who couldn't seem to meet his eyes. The woman hadn't even come to greet him. He was going to guess that she'd done something selfish again and felt guilty about it or she was currently in trouble and didn't want him to find out what she did.

"Yep, we're going to save her," Ruby announced. Crossing her arms defensively she waited for the usual arguments against saving the green-haired woman.

"Why," he asked simply.

He'd had four years to realize that Emerald and Mercury were not the monsters he thought they were. He might hate them both, but he was willing to help them if Ruby wanted him to. If it was Cinder then nothing in this world could make him think about helping the woman. However, Emerald and Mercury had simply followed their orders and showed loyalty to their leader. He could respect them for that.

"She's one of us," Ruby said. The determination in her gaze caused a small smile to appear on his face; he'd known she'd have a simple answer.

"Alright, but before we leave, you might want to work on this," he said. Reaching into his bag, he pulled out the folded weapon and tossed it to her.

The second her hand closed around the weapon, she moved almost on autopilot. Shifting her hand, she unfolded the weapon revealing the long-curved blade that seemed to call out to her. Running trembling fingers over the scuffed metal shaft, she could already envision repairing it. The long war scythe seemed to glint in the artificial lighting allowing her to see the rolls on the edge of the blade. All it would take to repair it was some sharpening and maybe replacing some of the screws in the shaft. Laying a hand on the handle in the center of the shaft, she resisted the urge to swing it in a wide arc.

Mercury was unable to look away from the woman even as whispers filled the Clarke corner. He could tell she was excited, still seeing her with a scythe was like watching a memory come to life. All the times he'd fought against her came to the forefront of his mind along with how confidently she'd stood against both Cinder and Salem. Glancing at Cait he could see the same wonder he felt on her face. Seeing his new partner with the weapon she was most proficient in really was a trip down memory lane. He couldn't wait to see her use it.

Weiss watched her leader study the scythe before glancing at Mercury. The awe in his eyes was the only hint that he was affected by Ruby regaining her weapon. It was also easy to see the fondness in his gaze; she supposed that he did like her team leader. The idea didn't bother her as much as it should have. If he was the same man he was during the war, she wouldn't have hesitated to deal with him, however, he was different. She still hated him for killing Winter, but she wasn't about to allow her personal feelings to influence her leader's relationships. She wasn't Blake. Speaking of her leader, it was nice to see Ruby so happy about getting a scythe. She'd felt that same happiness when she found a rapier.

"Seriously," Blake mumbled. Crossing her arms, she pretended that seeing Ruby with such a weapon didn't bring up memories.

"Where did you even find a war scythe," Weiss asked before Blake could ruin everything. Throwing a smirk in Danse's direction she noticed that he was watching her leader warily. Part of her wondered if he was finally realizing that he was involved in something dangerous; a bigger part wondered if he would stay once, he did. Turning her attention back to Jaune before she could further think about her second in command abandoning her, she tried to pretend the idea didn't bother her.

"A farmer. I and my men saved him, he gave that as payment," he said. Grinning at Ruby he thought she looked much better with the weapon. if they were going off to war, then his leader needed the weapon type she'd won the last one with. Besides, he still remembered the fifteen-year-old girl that happily introduced him to her scythe on the first day of school.

"Your men, what are you mercenary now," Mercury asked. Stepping forward, he didn't hesitate to meet the other man's gaze. There was a dark glow in Jaune's eyes that wasn't there four years ago and the cruel glow from the last time they met was tempered into coldness. It seemed that the man had changed a bit from a few months ago.

"Yep," Jaune said brightly. Feeling Tabby shift beside him, he grinned. The woman had been the one elected to follow him around by the others. Truthfully, she'd volunteered with loudly spoken words. It had been easier to just sit back and allow her to do what she wanted.

"Never knew you had it in you Knight," Mercury said. Smirking at the blonde, he couldn't decide what was more amusing. The fact Jaune had his own army or that the man was being so blunt about it.

"Well we're all a little different, aren't we Assassin," Jaune said. The bright grin on his face didn't change even as he silently dared Mercury to step a little closer.

Watching the two men grin at each other with varying degrees of malice and cruel amusement, Weiss rolled her eyes. Part of her felt as if this mission would end badly, however she also knew that everything was going to be interesting. The mere idea of fighting alongside them both to help Emerald was strange, but she felt amused. She couldn't wait to see what chaos they would create and of course Ruby was oblivious to the entire situation.

"I'll be finished with this by tonight, then we can leave," Ruby said brightly. Almost bouncing, she grinned brightly up at Jaune.

"Good," he said. Looking over at Hancock who raised an eyebrow, the blonde said, "I'll be bringing my men into the town to resupply."

For a moment the ghoul seemed to think over the words before shrugging. His guards could handle a few dozen mercenaries if they caused trouble. However, he doubted the blonde man would even think of betraying Ruby. From the stories he'd heard, the man was one of her most trusted friends. He doubted anything bad would happen from this, yet if he allowed them to wander around free, it would show weakness. He had to put some kind of measure in place, or his people might rebel.

"Kellogg make sure they don't cause trouble," he ordered gaining a cocky smirk from the man.

"Everyone else resupply as well," Weiss stated. This might be the last time they had a chance to do so. She had to find out if her injured men would be able to make the journey as well.

"Mercury can you and Cait..."

"On it Red," he said cutting off Ruby before she could ask. The moment the words left his mouth, she was rushing off to her workshop without hesitation. Shaking his head at her action, he motioned for Cait to follow as he started heading toward the door.

(Yang)

Having something other than a dress to wear for the first time in years felt nicer than she was willing to admit. Of course, the pants and shirt she wore were still dirty, but they were better than a sunflower dress. Rubbing her hand over her throat, she found it odd to touch skin rather than her collar. Still just because she wasn't wearing the collar didn't mean she was free. Part of her felt as if she'd just sold her soul to the devil rather than escaped. There was no way her new master would allow her to go to her sister even if he didn't call himself her master. The number of people willing to fight for him was far too great for her to simply kill them and run away. She was stuck here; stuck by his side.

Hearing the flap of the tent open she turned slowly her eyes landing on the man who currently held her life in his hands. Frowning at him she barely noticed the woman standing beside him until the brunette giggled. Turning her attention to the honey eyed woman, she traced the mask of freckles decorating her face before focusing on the long scar running down her neck. Raising an eyebrow at the injury, she wondered how the woman had survived before deciding that it didn't matter. Either way, such a thing had no bearing on her situation at all. Shifting her gaze back to Adam, she watched as he fell onto her sleeping bag with a groan.

Feeling her hand twitch, she allowed it to drop to her side. Part of her wanted to be annoyed that he had invaded her space without permission, but she currently belonged to him. Starting a useless argument wasn't going to help her get to Ruby any faster. Her little sister needed her, and she was trapped here unable to do anything for her. She wanted to help her sister, she wanted to be free, however, that wasn't going to happen. Clutching the fabric of her pants tightly she could almost feel her nails cutting into it.

"I liked the dress," Adam stated gaining her attention. Snapping her gaze back to him, she found his cold eyes staring up at her with amusement. He was spread out on her sleeping bag as if he was some sort of god to be worshipped. Narrowing her gaze, she ignored the raised eyebrow he aimed in her direction.

"Your welcome to wear it then," she said dryly. Hearing the woman chuckle, she felt almost worried when he twitched then he broke into laughter.

Throwing his head back the man roared in laughter loud enough that she thought the tent might shake. The laughter scared her because his eyes didn't change. He might've looked amused, but his eyes were cold. The expression caused her to shiver even as the woman gave her a knowing look. Tightening her grip on her pants, she bit her lip as his laughter cut off so suddenly that it felt like it hadn't really existed. The smirk on his face was mocking as he sat up looking at her like she was a new toy.

"Tell me, Yang, how did you lose your arm," he asked causing her to sneer.

"That is none of your business," she snapped without thinking. Flinching as fear rushed through her veins, she took a hesitant step back as he laughed again. Watching him raise his hands she shrank back just a bit.

"Hey I'm just curious," he said. Keeping his tone soothing, he watched her reaction closely. It was annoying that she was afraid of him still. It wasn't as if he was about to attack her without warning. She belonged to him now; he didn't attack his own property.

Standing silently as he studied her Yang released the grip she had on her pants as she looked down at the ground. what was she doing? She was the Golden Dragon, not some weak little girl. She was supposed to be strong, yet she was afraid. This whole messed up world was nothing like the one she left behind; there was no such thing as safety here. There was no one to come and tell her what to do or who to be. She wanted to go home; to find Ruby.

"I can't stay," she stated finally wiping the smug expression off his face. Seeing the frown begin to form she ignored the rush of fear at displeasing him to say, "that call for help that's been repeating on the radio is my sisters."

Clenching his fist, Adam frowned but didn't lash out at her. Instead, he simply studied the desperation in her eyes. Had he felt this desperate when his father vanished; was this simply something that accompanied the need to find family? At least her family hadn't vanished into thin air intent on leading her on a wild goose chase through the capital wasteland and breaking down her sanity bit by bit until there was nothing left but a brutal killer with no redeeming qualities. He doubted that her sister was anything like his father however, the situation did bring back memories.

Glancing past her to Eve, he wasn't shocked to see the open curiosity on her face. His new pet really was starting to stir up something interesting. He wanted to meet his sister of hers. He wanted to see why she held such loyalty to her family even after all this time. Chuckling he leaned back folding his arms behind his head as he considered her request. It was a request after all if he wanted, he could have her put on a leash.

"Alright, after we conquer the raiders at Cordova power station, we'll track down your sister," he said causing her eyes to widen.

"Why," she asked her eyes hardening as she glared at him. She would not allow him to turn this into some kind of game and get her little sister hurt. Not now or ever. Stomping forward she kneeled down her hand closing around his collar as she almost growled at him with feral intensity. Watching his eyes widen, she snapped, "Why are you going to help me? You don't know the first thing about me or about my sister. Why would you even think about helping us?!"

Her eyes were red. The violent color of blood that had quickly become the most fascinating part of his life. His new bet was turning out to be far more amusing than he'd ever expected her to be. Resting a hand on her hip, he leaned even further back causing her to flinch a bit at the action making him smirk up at her. This was interesting; the reaction made him want to push her even farther. What would she do? How would she react? Raising his other hand to cup her face, he felt her tremble at the gentle touch, but she didn't back down.

"Put that dress on for me again sometime and maybe I'll tell you."

The words caused her eyes to widen as he gently shoved her away. Standing he brushed off his pants before grinning at Eve who rolled her eyes. Despite her action, he could see the blistering amusement in her own gaze. She was just as interested in his new pet as he was, she simply hid it better than he did. Chuckling he nodded slightly in her direction causing her to wink before stalking out of the tent with the grace of a killer. Raising his hand in a wave, he followed the woman as Yang's gaze burned into his back. He would enjoy playing with her.

(Ruby)

Meeting the others at the gate, she couldn't keep the smile from her face. The folded scythe on her back was heavy enough that she could never forget the weight; it wasn't Crescent Rose, but it was still enough to make her feel better. She felt whole again for the first time in four years and from the smirk on Mercury's face he could tell about the change in her mood. Almost skipping she ignored Blake's existence as she drew Jaune into another hug. Holding him tightly she whispered thanks in his ear causing him to chuckle as his arms closed around her waist.

Opening his eyes, he noticed the blatant jealousy in Mercury's gaze as he looked between the two of them. It was obvious that the assassin cared about her. Smirking at him with a challenge he dared the other man to prove that he was a good match for Ruby. From the way, Mercury's gaze narrowed he would rise to that challenge without hesitation. Releasing his leader before his girls could get the wrong idea and try to kill her, he offered her a small smile that was nothing compared to the blinding smile on her own face.

"I assume you're now ready for war," Mercury asked with a small smirk. He was far more amused than anything else. He couldn't wait to see her in battle once again.

"Want to test me," she asked laying a hand on the weapon. Around her, their allies tensed at the words but Mercury only grinned.

"Is that an invitation," he asked tilting his head slightly. The words caused her to shiver as she imagined what fighting him would be like now. They were stronger than four years ago and at the same time weaker. Yet the idea of fighting him was almost too delicious to turn down. She wanted to fight someone on her level once again. The desire to see if she was still the same person as she used to be was so overwhelming that it had almost become a need. From the expression on his face, she could tell he felt the same.

"No!"

Weiss shoved the two apart her eyes daring either of them to say another word as she scolded them both for acting like children. Pouting Ruby dropped her hand from her weapon, while Mercury stepped back. The annoyance in his eyes was nothing but a mask for the amusement he felt at her actions. Watching Weiss step back, Danse couldn't help but frown. Despite her apparent anger, she didn't lash out at them; unlike when she trained new recruits. She was different around them in a way that made him wish that he knew the truth of why she cared enough to be kind.

"Save it for the raiders," she stated causing Mercury to chuckle.

"Fine, you're no fun Weiss," Ruby complained. Bumping her shoulder against her partners she smiled at the laugh that bubbled from her partner.

"Sorry for having a brain Rubes," she said despite her amusement. The statement caused her leader to brighten as she smirked.

"Don't worry, that's what we like the most about you Icy," Mercury teased causing her to still. Frowning she glanced at him with narrowed eyes before shrugging. A soft smile crossed her face as she offered him a nod.

"Shall we go to war then," Kellogg asked laying a hand on her shoulder. Relaxing, Ruby nodded as she turned her attention to Jaune. Twitching a bit as he realized that he had to introduce Ruby to his soldiers. It wouldn't take long until they destroyed the ruined city without hesitation. Realizing that he didn't care about the city, he shrugged.

"Of course."

(Emerald)

It would've been easy to be angry at the situation, but instead, she felt guilty. There was no doubt that Mercury was coming after her; he would always come after her. Not even he could beat an army of Raiders. There was no one that would help him either; if he tried to save her, he would be alone. He would die trying to save her life just like Cinder. Curling up farther in her cage, she tried to ignore the fact she had no idea what to do.

If this was Remnant, she could use her semblance to escape, however, this wasn't Remnant. Touching the collar around her neck she was reminded of the pain she'd felt when Cinder died; if Mercury died too then she would most likely die with him. She'd been a fool to believe they could make any kind of life here. This world was nothing but horror and pain it was much worse than the one they'd left behind. She didn't mind the pain she felt on an almost daily basis as long as Mercury was with her. The sound of footsteps caused her to stiffen seconds before she heard gunshots.


End file.
